EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 336 - RECONSTITUTING THE NATIONAL ACTION COMMITTEE ON ANTI-HIJACKING AND ANTI-TERRORISM (NACAHT) AS THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CIVIL AVIATION SECURITY (NCCAS)

WHEREAS, the National Action Committee on Anti-Hijacking (NACAH) was first organized on April 28, 1976 through Letter of Instruction 399 following the 1976 Zamboanga PAL hijacking incident. The NACAH was reconstituted on June 24, 1990 through EO 393. By virtue of Republic Act 6975 the NACAH was again reconstituted on April 5, 1991 through * EO 242, the chairman was then transferred from the Department of National Defense (DND) to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG);

WHEREAS, the alarming and increasing incidence of terrorism worldwide including the recent occurrences in our country directed against civil aviation has downplayed law enforcement effort and capabilities to counter terrorism;  

WHEREAS, it is significant to provide and establish a more effective mechanism primarily to contain threats of aviation-related terrorism and secondarily to strengthen our law enforcement capabilities to effectively address all forms of terroristic acts against civil aviation;

WHEREAS, the threat of terrorism against civil aviation directed terrorism continues to be a major concern in the aspect of peace and order in general and in the security of the civil aviation industry in particular;

WHEREAS, there is a need to adopt/implement concrete measures geared towards a total approach to the problem of terrorism in the country directed against civil aviation industry by reconstituting NACAHT;

WHEREAS, in its resolve to effectively address the problem of terrorism, the government had issued Executive Order Number 246, s. of 1995, thereby reconstituting the National Action Committee on Anti-Hijacking (NACAH) into the National Action Committee on Anti-Hijacking and Anti-Terrorism (NACAHT) accordingly;

WHEREAS, in order to successfully coordinate and orchestrate cognizant government agencies against this problem, the Philippine National Police had reclassified terrorism per se as a transnational crime;

WHEREAS, in the absence of a formal document specifically redefining the mission and function of both Philippine Center for Transnational Crime and the National Action Committee on Anti-Hijacking and Anti-Terrorism the co-existence of this two distinct and separate police agencies may eventually lead to strategic and tactical problems arising from conflicts of interest and jurisdiction on matters related to the problem of terrorism;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the law, do hereby order: 

Section 1. National Action Committee on Anti-Hijacking and Anti-Terrorism (NACAHT) is hereby reconstituted and renamed as the National Council for Civil Aviation Security (NCCAS).

Sec. 2. The composition of the NCCAS shall be the following:

Chairman - Secretary of the Interior and Local Government

Vice Chairman - Secretary of National Defense

Member - Secretary of Budget and Management

Member - Secretary of Finance

Member - Secretary of Foreign Affairs

Member - Secretary of Justice

Member - Secretary of Transportation and Communications

Member - Press Secretary

Member - Director-General, Air Transportation Office

Member - National Security Adviser

Member - Presidential Consultant on Police Affairs

Member - Group Commander, Presidential Security Group

Member - Director-General, National Intelligence
  Coordinating Agency

Member - Bureau of Immigration and Deportation

Member - Chief, Philippine National Police

Sec. 3. In addition to the provisions of Letter of Instructions No. 399 dated 28 April 1976, Section s 2 and 3 of Executive Order No. 393 dated 24 January 1990, and Sec. 3 of Executive Order No. 246 dated 18 May 1995, the NCCAS shall:

(a) Formulate plans to direct, control, supervise and integrate all measures aimed at preventing and suppressing all terrorist threats to civil aviation especially hijacking, commandeering, sabotage of plane and airport facilities, violence directed against civil aviation personnel as well as the plane riding public and/or the citizens-at-large, and all other forms of terrorism with the end in view of protecting Philippine national interests, and

(b) To develop and continue enhancing the level of operational effectiveness of local law enforcement agencies under jurisdiction and immediate supervision of the NCCAS.

Sec. 4. The NCCAS shall establish close coordination and cooperation with concerned agencies of countries which are vigorously opposed to international terrorism to enable the Philippine government to actively participate in the concerned effort to secure civil aviation industry in general and the air transportation facilities together with all personnel situated therein. The NCCAS shall further enhance the intelligence and operational functions of concerned entities and authorities in dealing with activities of both terrorists and suspected terroristic cells and organizations.

Sec. 5. The NCCAS is hereby authorized to call upon and involve the other departments, bureaus, agencies, offices and other instrumentalities of the government to provide assistance in the effective implementation of this Executive Order.

Sec. 6. All powers, functions, and resources of the NACAH, as stipulated in Letter of Instruction No. 339 dated 28 April 1976, as amended by Executive Order Nos. 393, *454 and 246, shall be absorbed by the NCCAS.

Sec. 7. Letter of Instruction No. 399 series of 1976, Executive Order No. 393, series of 1990, Executive Order No. 452, series of 1991 and Executive Order No. 246, series of 1995 are modified accordingly.

Sec. 8. This Executive Order shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 5th day of January, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand One.

* Copied verbatim from documents obtained directly from Malacañang records. (should be read as EO 452)