Philippine National Police Academy: Silang, Cavite

The hallowed parade ground and grandstand.

I was once a frequent visitor to the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) several years ago. This year I am returning to the country's premier academic institution after two years since my last visit there. 

My latest discovery: I will not be able to read Kalasag anymore. Kalasag is the magazine of the cadets (in other words, school organ). Although I didn't like the version of Kaydet Girl, I still appreciate Kalasag in its entirety. (By the way, Kaydet Girl was a regular page in the Kalasag magazine that features girlfriends [sometimes their mothers too] of the cadets, usually students and civilian girls.) Aside from that, I also learned that the rest of the corps publication are gone. Anyway, the disappearance of the corps publication is not my concern. I am grateful that I have a keepsake of those publications that I compiled years ago. I read all of them including the passages in the memento notebooks.

Situations really change but the fact that PNPA has become a tourist spot for Silang town in Cavite province is undeniable. PNPA is the academic institution where future leaders and defenders of the Filipino people come from. Cadets in the academy are in full government scholar for a four-year degree course Bachelor of Science in Public Safety (BSPS).

Upon graduation, the graduates are automatically commissioned as officers of the tri-bureau public safety services under the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG). These are the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Philippine National Police (PNP) and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP).

The rostrum where the President of the Philippines speaks before the graduates.

PNPA is situated inside Camp General Mariano Castaneda. The proximity of the place to Tagaytay City makes it a very ideal place to drop by and worth for a postcard. My recommendation: the best way to enjoy the place and visit Tagaytay City at the same time is to have a car. In that way, you can drop by to various fruit stands, buy some Japanese corn along the way or have some other short stop in nearby restaurants and spots like Paseo, honeybee farm, Nuvali and others.

Before, it was a long blue line. Color of uniform changed; now it's a long maroon line.

Of course, an ideal way to make the most of PNPA (aside from considering it as a tourist destination) is to encourage relatives and friends to take the entrance examination to the cadetship program. Specific qualifications apply while forms can be downloaded as you visit their website, www.pnpa.edu.ph