The Philippine National Police (PNP) has created a special task force that will focus on conducting operations to disband private armed groups across the country.

Dubbed as Task Force DPAG (Disbandment of Private Armed Group), acting PNP chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez, Jr. said it will replace the police’s five Area Police Commands (APCs) that were already disbanded on Oct. 1 this year.

“Their job is to address the PAGs. We will synergize the efforts of the regional office, provincial office and tactical elements,” said Nartatez.

The APCs, formerly called Directorate for Integrated Police Operations (DIPO) was created to synchronize police operations similar to the major area commands of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

The DIPOs have five areas—the DIPO-Northern Luzon, DIPO- Southern Luzon, DIPO-Visayas, DIPO-Eastern Mindanao, and, DIPO-Western Mindanao.

While all of them are headed by two-star police generals, the problem was that their existence resulted in the duplication of functions and missions of the police regional police offices.

The DIPO was later renamed to APC, and was eventually recommended for abolition.

Nartatez said the five APCS—two in Luzon, one in Visayas and two in Mindanao, will have a specific goal, which is to run after the armed men and loose guns under private armed groups which usually become active during elections.

“The instruction for them is to identify existing and potential PAGs, disband them and account for all their firearms,” said Nartatez.

He said the five task group DPAGs will be supervised by Police Lt. Gen. Edgar Alan Okubo, the deputy chief for Operations of the PNP.