To ensure the safety of Vice President-elect Sara Duterte, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has created a new security unit.
The AFP has activated on June 24, 2022 the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group (VPSPG), a dedicated unit that will ensure the safety and security of the Vice President of the Philippines and her family.
In a Facebook post, the AFP shared that the activation of the VPSPG, which is formerly the Vice Presidential Security Detachment attached to the Presidential Security Group, is now a separate unit and is headed by an O-6 grade officer (rank of Colonel/Navy Captain).
AFP Chief of Staff General Andres Centino, who led the activation ceremony on Friday, June 24, at the AFP General Headquarters with other top AFP leadership, stated that the AFP saw it fitting to provide the Office of the Vice President with a dedicated unit that shall ensure the safety and security of the second-highest elected official in the country.
The activation of the VPSPG is new to the Filipinos as what is known to them is the Presidential Security Group (PSC), which is the primary agency concerned with providing close-in security and escort to the president and the vice president of the Philippines, their immediate families, former presidents and vice presidents of the Philippines as well as visiting heads of state.
The PSG is also stationed at Malacañang Palace, the official residence of the president. Members of the PSG accompany the president on both domestic and overseas trips.
