The country’s top security institutions paid tribute to Juan Ponce Enrile on Friday, Nov. 14, who passed away this week after nearly six decades in public service, including as defense minister where he was involved in structuring the relationship between the military and police.

Enrile died on Nov. 13 at the age of 101 after being hospitalized due to pneumonia.

Police Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr., acting chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), said Enrile’s influence on the country’s policing system spanned multiple eras, beginning with his leadership of the then Ministry of National Defense, when the national police force was still under the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Nartatez credited Enrile for helping professionalize and strengthen the operational capability of the former Philippine Constabulary-Integrated National Police (PC–INP), the predecessor of the current PNP, and for continuing to support modern policing reforms as a senator and later as chief presidential legal counsel.

“Manong Johnny will always be part of not only the history of the country’s police force but also of the history of the Filipinos as a nation,” he added.

Enrile served as Secretary of National Defense from 1970 to 71, resigning in August 1971 to run for Senate where he lost, and reappointed in the same position from 1972 until November 1986. Under his tenure, the national security apparatus such as the military, constabulary, and police-like forces, was tightly integrated under the regime of then president Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

The creation of the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) was also linked to Enrile’s tenure as defense minister, institutionalizing police training, which greatly contributed to policing professionalism.

“The men and women of the Philippine National Police extend their deepest condolences to his family and loved ones,” Nartatez said.

To honor him, Nartatez said the Philippine flag in front of the National Headquarters at Camp Crame in Quezon City will be flown at half-mast on Monday, Nov. 17, during the PNP’s flag-raising ceremony.

The PNP will also coordinate with Enrile’s family if they want to hold a necrological service at Camp Crame, Nartatez said.

The DND, in a separate statement released by Defense spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arsenio Andolong, described Enrile as an “icon in defense policy and strategy” who helped shape the foundations of the modern defense establishment.

The DND noted that Enrile’s long tenure as defense minister left a lasting imprint on national security structures even as his career intersected with pivotal and contentious chapters in Philippine history.

As defense secretary from 1970 to 1971 and 1972 to 1986, Enrile saw the imposition of martial law in 1972, which was marked by widespread human rights abuses and increased militarization of policing and constabulary functions.

But in 1986, his defection from the Marcos regime helped trigger the historic People Power uprising that led to the ouster of the dictator.

The DND ordered that its flag be flown at half-mast in honor of its longest-serving chief.

For its part, the AFP acknowledged Enrile’s significant role in the country’s security and political landscape.

The AFP recalled Enrile’s service as Secretary of the Department of Justice (DOJ) from 1968 to 1970, and later as defense minister, before he returned to the legislature where he eventually became Senate president from 2008 to 2013.

“The AFP extends its deepest condolences to his family and loved ones. We honor his years of service and the enduring debates about his legacy, which form part of our national history,” said AFP public affairs office chief Colonel Xerxes Trinidad.