President Marcos has ordered the Philippine National Police (PNP) to sustain the gains of its anti-crime initiatives, as he confirmed that he has already chosen the country's next top cop.

Marcos said this as he ended his participation at the 46th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Tuesday evening, May 27.

In an interview with reporters there, the President confirmed reports that he had already selected the next PNP chief but declined to disclose the name, saying the officer should hear it from him first.

"I would rather not use this forum to announce that. I think, I should talk to them first because the official decision has not been made," he said.

"They should hear it. Whoever it is should hear about it first from me, not through the news," he added.

While withholding the name, the President described the next PNP chief as a senior officer already familiar with the country’s law enforcement landscape.

"He knows the situation. And I will actually tell them, carry on what you are doing. Because we have very good statistics concerning crime," Marcos said.

The announcement of the next PNP chief came following the extension of the term of the current PNP chief P/Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil, who was supposed to retire on Feb. 7.

Marcos extended Marbil's term by four months to ensure "leadership stability within the PNP during a critical election season."

President Marcos noted that crime rates across the country have dropped significantly, which he attributed to the current leadership of the PNP.

"Metro Manila crime rate is down by 23 percent in six months. At a national level, from January 1 to May 16 last year, we had 15,156 index crimes. This year, same period, it’s down to 11,493. Lahat 'yan bumaba—murder, homicide, physical injury, robbery, theft, rape, carnapping," he said.

Despite this, Marcos stressed the importance of police visibility in communities, adding that many Filipinos equate safety with a visible police presence.

"I perfectly understand that. Kahit papaano, may pulis diyan. May umiikot dito na pulis (There should be police roaming around)," he said.

"Kaunting sigaw lang, tatakbo na ‘yan (One shout and they're already on their way). That’s important, it’s important to people," he added.

This, he said, is the idea behind the administration’s new initiative, “Cops on the Beat,” which aims to deploy more officers on foot patrol to reassure the public.

"So, despite the fact that maraming maganda namang result na statistic, na maganda naman ang nagiging trabaho ng kapulisan natin in terms of law enforcement, kailangan din, hindi sapat na marami tayong – nababawasan natin ‘yung krimen (Despite the PNP's good performance and good statistics, it's not enough that the crime rate is going down)," the President said.

"Kailangan nakikita yung pulis para feeling safe naman yung mga tao (The people should see the police so they would feel safe)," he added.

President Marcos reiterated his goal of achieving a five-minute emergency response time, particularly in urban areas.

He said the government has been working since last year to centralize emergency call systems, which are currently fragmented across provinces and municipalities.

"We are hoping that, at least in the urban areas, we are hoping [for] five minutes. That’s the aspiration," Marcos said.

"If we have the Cops On the Beat and they’re in good direct communication with their dispatcher... then that will be a good quick response," he added.

President Marcos acknowledged the challenges, particularly the high number of prank calls, which reportedly account for 70 percent of emergency hotline traffic. He said the administration is looking into ways to minimize this problem.