Manila Mayor Alfredo S. Lim threw his support Sunday to the members of the Manila Police District (MPD) who are contesting a Philippine National Police (PNP) memorandum requiring them to wear camouflage uniform during inspections beginning on Sept. 5.

Lim, who spent a good number of years serving as a member and later even chief of the Manila police, said he strongly supports the stand of the Manila ’s Finest Brotherhood Association, Inc. (MFBAI) on the issue.

In its position paper forwarded to the mayor’s office, the MFBAI stressed that the memo issued by PNP regional directorial staff chief Senior Supt. Miguel Laurel clearly runs counter to National Police Commission (Napolcom) Resolution 2005-385 dated Nov. 9, 2005 which states that camouflage green field service uniforms (FSUs) will be for the exclusive use only of the PNP personnel assigned in the various mobile group companies (regional, provincial and city) involved in counter insurgency operations in rural and forested areas.

The same resolution also states that “the validity and effectivity of this standard specification for different types of FSUs for every type of operational category of the office/station unit be for a fixed period of 10 years upon approval hereof and shall not be subject to further amendments.

“As the said Napolcom resolution may not be amended or repealed until November 9, 2015, the said memo requiring PNP personnel to wear camouflage green uniform is in gross violation thereof….void and without legal effect,” the MFBAI said.

SPO2 Antonio Emmanuel, president of the MFBAI, said members of the association are of the belief that the wearing of camouflage uniform is a form of militarization and is in violation of the mandate of the Constitution which provides that “the State shall establish and maintain one police force which shall be national in scope and civilian in character.”

Camouflage, according to the association, is a military uniform usually worn by soldiers during combat operations, adding that this is already embedded in the minds of the people.

The MFBAI said apart from creating confusion among the people since the PNP also has its own prescribed uniform, the wearing of camouflage uniform by policemen in the city would “project an environment of fear among civilians and create the impression that something bad is going on in the country more particularly, the suspicion that police function, which is purely civilian in character, is being militarized.”

In addition to this, the MFBAI said the procurement of this kind of uniform would also mean extra expenses on the part of the PNP personnel who could hardly make both ends meet, especially in these times of economic difficulties.

“The police, by constitutional mandate, is a civilian organization and performs civilian functions. Let us keep it that way by projecting its image as such,” the association said.

The position paper came as an offshoot of a memo issued by Laurel last Aug. 17 requiring the PNP personnel to wear camouflage during the scheduled inspection on Sept. 5.

Aside from camouflage uniform, the personnel were also required to wear field caps, rolled upper garment, lower garment tucked inside the all tropical combat boots, olive green under shirt and black garrison belt square skeleton, solid brass buckle.