As one of the favorite punching bags of critics, the announcement of who’s in and who’s out in the list of most complained government agencies was a nerve-wracking experience for top officials of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

And PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio C. Nartatez, Jr. appeared to have heaved a sigh of relief when the police organization was not included in the list based on the monitoring and auditing of the Anti-Red Tape Authority’s (ARTA) for the first quarter of this year.

For the top PNP official of the land, the exclusion of the police force from this list reflects a significant shift in organizational culture, “Our absence from the ARTA list is not a result of chance but a product of a deliberate and aggressive internal cleansing program. We have shifted to a proactive organization.”

He attributed the achievement to a transition from reactive policing to a more proactive stance through the Enhanced Managing Police Operations (EMPO) and emphasized that it reinforced the PNP’s good performance in the latest OCTA Research survey.

The survey showed that the PNP maintained a 63 percent public trust rating and a 61 percent satisfaction rating among Filipinos.

Nartatez said such figures suggest that the public perceives a genuine improvement in how officers handle frontline duties and community interactions, “It shows the Filipino people are feeling the effects of our reforms. We are building a foundation.

To maintain this standing, Nartatez directed all local police units and commanders to strictly follow the Citizen’s Charter to eliminate bureaucratic delays.

He also expressed a strong intent to remain focused on removing "ninja cops" and scalawags who damage the reputation of the service.

“My marching order to every commander is simple: do not let your guard down. We must sustain this momentum. Our goal is to be the gold standard of public service,” said Nartatez.