Manila: The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Tuesday that reforms implemented over the past four years under the Marcos administration have significantly improved the performance metrics of the National Prosecution Service (NPS).
According to Philippines News Agency, DOJ Secretary Fredderick Vida reported that from June 2022 to March 2026, the NPS' disposition rate increased from 92.95 percent to 99.77 percent, and the prosecution success rate rose from 89.94 percent to 90.84 percent. During this period, the DOJ resolved a total of 1,621,721 cases and addressed 700 petitions for review.
Vida emphasized the importance of these statistics, stating, "And at the end of the day, better performance translates to efficient and effective delivery of public service. And numbers will not lie. We cannot debate with what's the data being shown to us."
He cited several circulars that contributed to these improvements, which were initiated during the tenure of former DOJ Secretary and now Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla. Notably, Department Orders (DO) Nos. 020 and 028 were highlighted for enhancing the DOJ's policy on proactive prosecutor involvement in case build-up and providing rules for summary and expedited preliminary investigations.
The Marcos administration's achievements were further reinforced through DO 1008, focusing on the assessment of pending criminal cases for lower courts, DO 015, which outlines rules for preliminary investigations and inquest proceedings, and DO 011, which sets guidelines for recommending bail amounts in criminal cases.
