MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine National Police (PNP) has appointed a former officer to the United Nations (UN) as its new uniting voice.

Effective on Tuesday, January 22, Senior Superintendent Bernard Banac steps up as the new chief of the PNP’s Public Information Office, making him the new spokesman of the 190,000-strong police force.

Banac was previously assigned as the assistant chief of the PNP Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies, the police group which regulates security agencies.

His UN stint: One of his longest assignments for the PNP was being an officer for the UN for 4 years.

He worked as a technical adviser in UN police arms in the Ivory Coast from 2005 to 2007 then as an operations and planning officer in Kosovo from 2008 to 2009.

Banac moved forward with another diplomacy-related assignment in 2013, serving as the chief for the Diplomatic Protection Unit of the PNP Police Security and Protection Group.

From 2014 to 2015, he was the police commander in charge of Sorsogon, then from 2015 to 2016, he was the senior executive assistant to then PNP chief Ricardo Marquez.

He’s a young spokesman: Banac replaced fellow UN alumnus Chief Superintendent Benigno Durana, who has been tasked to head the PNP’s Directorate for Police and Community Relations.

New spokesman Banac is young and advanced for his post as he is a member of a much later class than his predecessor. Banac is a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of 1992, while Durana is a member of PMA’s 1988 class.

With his new post, Banac is now qualified to become a Chief Superintendent—a one-star police general. – Rappler.com