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SECTION I
General

1.         Purpose — This Circular provides rules and regulations pertinent to the organization, operation and administration of the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP).

2.         References —

a.      Chapter 10, Subtitle II, Title VIII, Book IV, Executive Order No. 292 Administrative Code of 1987);

b.      Presidential Decree No. 190 dated May 11, 1973, as amended by Presidential Decree No. 451 dated May 13, 1974; and

c.       Office the President’s Memorandum Circular No. 1161 dated September 12, 1979.

SECTION II
Objective, Functions and Organization of the College

3.         Objective — The objective of the College is to prepare and develop the skills and competence of potential national defense leaders, civilian officials of the different agencies and instrumentalities of the Government, and selected executives from the private sector in the formulation and implementation of national security policies, and for higher responsibilities and to conduct strategic and international studies as basis for national policies.

4.         Functions — In order to achieve the above objective, the College shall:

a.         Undertake an academic program consisting of a graduate-level course of study and such other special courses designed to provide the participants with the broader perspective necessary for the formulation, development and implementation of national security policies and attainment of national objective;

b.         Undertake a research and studies program that will enhance the quality and effectiveness of national security formulation and management;

c.         Undertake an extension program consisting of short courses, seminar-workshop, policy conferences, and public fora on national security issues to supplement the academic, and research and studies program of the College; and

d.         Perform such other functions that the President of the Philippines and the Secretary of National Defense may direct.

5.         Direction, Supervision, and Control — The National Defense College of the Philippines, hereafter referred to as the College, shall be under the direction, supervision, and control of the Secretary of National Defense.

6.         Organization —

a.      The College shall be headed by a President who shall administer the affairs of the College with the assistance of an Executive Vice-President, a Vice-President for Academic Affairs, a Vice-President for Administrative Affairs, and a Vice-President for Research and Special Studies. The Executive Vice-President shall act for the President of the College, hereafter referred to as President, in his absence and shall perform such other functions as may be assigned to him by the President. The Vice-President for Academic Affairs shall be responsible for the development, implementation, supervision, and evaluation of academic programs; the Vice-President for Administrative Affairs, for the overall administrative support to all the activities of the College; and, the Vice-President for Research and Special Studies, on the conduct of research work and special studies.

b.      Academic Board — The College shall have an Academic Board to assist the President discharge the following functions:

1.         Supervise the academic affairs of the College;

2.         Recommend academic consultants, professors, lecturers, instructors, research assistants, thesis advisers, members of oral examination panels, and other resource persons of the College;

3.         Recommend and carry out programs and courses of studies to be conducted by the College to accomplish its objectives;

4.         Recommend policies relative to academic matters;

5.         Recommend to the President the conferment of the degree of Master in National Security Administration (MNSA) and other degrees to participants who have satisfactorily complied with the requirements of such courses; and

6.         Perform such other duties and functions as the President may direct.

The Board shall be composed of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs as Chairman, and the Heads of the various academic disciplines as members, who shall be designated by the President subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense.

c.       Detailed Organization — The detailed organization of the College shall be determined by the President subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense.

7.         Qualifications —

a.      Both the President and the Executive Vice-President must be holders of Master in National Security Administration (MNSA) degree and preferably, a relevant masteral degree.

b.      The Vice-President for Academic Affairs and the Vice-President for Research and Studies must be holders of the MNSA degree and, preferably, a doctoral degree in an area relevant to the academic and research and studies program of the College.

c.       The Heads of the various academic departments must be holders of a relevant masteral or doctoral degree.

SECTION III
College Operations

A.        The Academic Program

8.         Power to Confer a Master’s Degree — The College is empowered to confer the degree of Master in National Security Administration (MNSA) upon all those who shall satisfactorily complete the prescribed requirements of this course. The MNSA is the primary component of the Academic Program of the College and shall be otherwise known as the Regular Course of the College.

9.         Admission —

a.      Responsibility for Admission — The College shall have a Board of Admission responsible for the screening and selection of the best qualified for the MNSA and other courses under the Academic Program in accordance with existing laws and regulations. It shall be composed of five (5) members to be chosen by the President, three (3) of whom shall be outstanding MNSA graduates, each representing the military, the civilian government, and the private sector.

b.      Admission Requirements — To be qualified for admission to the MNSA program, the following requirements must be met:

1.         For Military Personnel

a.         Must be at least a Lieutenant Colonel or Commander, Philippine Navy (PN) in rank;

b.         Must be a General Staff Course (GSC) eligible or must have been assigned to a position of high responsibility, the exercise of which would enable him to acquire expertise otherwise gained through actual formal GSC schooling;

c.         Must be a bachelor’s degree holder; and,

d.         Must not be more than fifty-one (51) years of age upon admission with at least three (3) years of service remaining prior to compulsory retirement prior to compulsory retirement to be reckoned from the date of graduation.

2.         For Civilian Government Personnel

a.         Must be holding at least a position of Division Chief of a Department or its equivalent in other offices and agencies of the government;

b.         Must have had at least ten (10) years of government service;

c.         Must be a holder of a bachelor’s degree;

d.         Must not be less than thirty-five (35) years nor more than fifty-five (55) years of age upon admission.

3.         For Candidates from the Private Sector

a.         Must not be less than thirty-five (35) years nor more than fifty-five (55) years of age upon admission;

b.         Must be a holder of a bachelor’s degree; and,

c.         Must be any of the following:

i.          Holder of a key position within the policy and decision-making level in a vital industry, business or national organization and recommended by the head of the organization and/or professional association; or,

ii.          An executive of a national organization dedicated to social, economic, or cultural activities of such importance as to be considered in national policy formulation; or

iii.         An executive of an outstanding educational institution of higher learning.

c.       Waiver of Admission Requirements — Upon recommendation of the President, the Secretary of National Defense may issue waivers of admission requirements on case to case basis.

10.       Standing List of NDCP Candidates — Pursuant to Section 6 of Presidential Decree No. 452, the heads of various departments, officers, agencies and instrumentalities of the National Government and the Armed Forces of the Philippines shall submit to the Department of National Defense a list of ranking officials and officers who qualify under Paragraph 9 of this Circular, who are holding or are earmarked for positions of higher responsibility and/or involved in the formulation and implementation of national security policy. The names of these officials and officers shall compose the Standing List of NDCP Candidates, hereafter called the List, which shall annually be kept up-to-date and published by the College in consultation with the departments, offices, agencies and instrumentalities concerned. The President shall recommend to the Secretary of National Defense, the candidates to be chosen from the List for admission in the course.

11.       Quota Spaces — The President shall recommend to the Secretary of National Defense, quota allocations for each course.

12.       Publication of Student Spaces for Selected Executives from the Private Sector — The President shall circularize student quota spaces for selected executives from the private sector not later than ninety (90) days prior to the opening of each class in the College to:

a.      Chambers of commerce, industry, agriculture and similar organizations of national scope; and

b.      National civic and professional organizations.

13.       Allowances of Participants of the MNSA Course — Pursuant to the Office of the President’s Memorandum Circular No. 1161 dated September 12, 1979, participants are entitled to collect from their respective agencies the amount of five thousand pesos (P5,000.00) to cover the cost of research work, thesis writing and other incidental expenses. They are also entitled to collect per diems which shall be beyond ninety (90) days but not to exceed the duration of the course in accordance with existing auditing rules: provided, that the granting of per diems shall not apply to participants whose offices are located within Metro Manila.

Also, participants shall be entitled, to receive a clothing allowance of six hundred pesos P600.00.

14.       Privileges of Graduates of the MNSA Course

a.      Authority to Use the Abbreviation “MNSA” — Authority to use the abbreviation “MNSA” after their names shall be given to graduates who will be conferred the degree of Master of National Security Administration.

b.      Authority to Wear Badge and Pin — Graduates of the MNSA course shall be given the authority to wear the NDCP badge and pin.

c.       Preferential Considerations — Graduates of the MNSA course will receive, for purposes of promotion to key and sensitive positions in the military and civilian offices, preferential consideration and/or credit points in the grade of class of their respective positions.

Graduates of the MNSA course from the military sector and Philippine National Police shall be given preference in the assignment to positions of higher responsibility.

d.      Commissioned Rank of Civilian Graduates

1.       Subject to pertinent AFP rules and regulations and approval by the President of the Philippines, a civilian graduate of the MNSA course —

a.            Who already holds a commission in the Reserve Force shall have his rank readjusted to Lieutenant Colonel/Commander (PN); or

b.            Who does not hold a commission in the Reserve Force shall be appointed/commissioned in the initial grade of Lieutenant Colonel/Commander (PN).

2.       The Chief of Staff, AFP shall extend the support/assistance needed to ensure that the reserve commission/readjustment of reserve rank of the civilian graduates of the MNSA course shall be approved on time and ready to be presented to them on the day of their graduation.

15.           Placement Committee — A Committee to be composed of members to be designated by the Secretary of National Defense shall be created for the purpose of formulating a plan for the appropriate placement and utilization of MNSA holders in order than the competence and expertise of such holders may be taken advantage of by the Department of National Defense, in particular, and the government and participating private agencies, in general, subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense in the proper implementation of the incentives to MNSA holders provided in this Circular.

16.           Special Courses — The President may prescribe such other special courses of study under its Academic Program within the context of the general objectives of the College, subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense.

17.           Standards — The MNSA and the special courses shall be conducted according to the standards of comparable outstanding educational institutions in the Philippines and abroad.

B.        The Research and Studies Program

18.           Research and Studies Program — Subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense, the Presidzent shall prepare the annual Research and Studies Program. The program aims to enhance the quality and effectiveness of national security formulation and management.

C.        The Extension Program

19.           Extension Program — Subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense, the President shall prepare the annual Extension Program for each fiscal year, consisting of short courses, seminar-workshops, policy conferences, and public fora on national security issues. The program aims to supplement the Academic, and Research and Studies Programs.

SECTION IV
Administrative Policies

20.           Detail of Personnel — The President shall recommend to the Secretary of National Defense the detail to the College of commissioned officers, officials and employees from the various departments, offices, agencies and instrumentalities of the government; Provided, that commissioned officers shall be detailed with the College primarily to perform instructor’s duty.

21.           Sources of Faculty and Other Academic Personnel — The faculty, staff, lecturers, academic consultants, thesis advisers and members of oral examination panels shall be outstanding professionals in their respective fields of specialization and who may be drawn from the:

a.    Military and civilian branches of the government;
b.    Government and private educational institutions; and,
c.    Industrial, commercial, and professional establishments.

22.           Funding — The funding of the College shall be carried in its annual budget under the Department of National Defense.

23.       Entitlement to Honoraria and Fees —

a.      The President may hire qualified individuals as heads of the different academic departments and research assistants on full time basis for a term of one (1) year, renewable annually subject to the approval of the Secretary of National Defense and who shall receive appropriate salaries and allowances in accordance with the national compensation plan issued by the Department of Budget and Management.

b.      The President is authorized to appoint the members of the Academic Staff who shall receive honoraria hereunder indicated:

1.         Consultants/Lecturers (Experts whose services may be availed of from time to time)	P100 to 250 per hour
2.         Thesis Advisers (Those who will advise and guide the participants toward the satisfactory completion of their thesis)	P1,000 per thesis
3.         Members of the Thesis Oral Examination Panel	P100 to 250 per hour

Qualified civilian officials detailed with the College when called upon to deliver lectures, serve as members of the resource panels or correct examination papers, reports and others, shall be paid for such additional services at the same rate as that paid other lecturers or resource persons provided, that, the maximum payment for such services shall not exceed that which corresponds to a total of sixteen (16) hours a month; provided, further, that civilian officials whose jobs and/or positions in the College include instructor duty as part of their normal functions and all military personnel detailed with the College are not entitled to such payment when called upon to render the said additional services.

24.       College Incentive Allowance for Commissioned Officers Detailed with the College — AFP officers detailed with the College as members of the faculty and staff are entitled to a monthly college incentive allowance equivalent to twenty-five (25) percent of their base pay; provided, that they satisfy the aggregate minimum monthly instructional load or forty eight (48) hours, to be computed as follows: one (1) hour of actual classroom instruction is equivalent to one instructional hour, and one and half (1 1/2) hours of research work or two and a half (2 1/2) hours of training management activities shall be considered as one instructional hour; provided, further, that subject officers shall be entitled to a monthly allowance at ten (10) percent of their base pay if the above mentioned minimum monthly instructional load is not satisfied. The training management activities include supervision of classroom or field activities by instructors and module/course directors but does not include staff, guard or administrative duties at NDCP.

25.       Constitutional Prohibition — Nothing in this Circular shall be construed as authorizing the appointment/designation of a military person in the active military service to a civilian position in the NDCP, it being that such an appointment/designation is prohibited by the Constitution.

SECTION V
Rescission and Effectivity

26.       Rescision — The Ministry Circular No. 07 dated August 22, 1979, as amended, and all other publications contrary to the provisions of this Circular are hereby rescinded.

27.       Effectivity — This Circular shall take effect immediately.

09 May 2000

(SGD.) FIDEL V. RAMOS
Secretary