Aquino inaugurates 'presidential situation room' for national emergencies

President Benigno Simeon Aquino III led the inauguration of the Presidential Situation Room (PSR) where he will handle situations of critical importance to national security. Located at the Presidential Security Group compound across Malacañang Palace, the PSR will also provide the President information in real time and a space set aside for dealing with security situations. The President created the PSR by virtue of Administrative Order No. 2 on Sept. 17 last year. It is managed and operated by the Office of the National Security Adviser and performs the following functions: a) Monitors events, situations and developments that have national security implications including those with serious diplomatic, political and peace and order ramifications; b) Provides current intelligence and crisis support to the President, the Executive Secretary, the National Security Adviser and the Secretary of the Presidential Management Staff; c) Serves as the primary monitoring, coordination and communications center in Malacañang on classified information; d) Coordinates the collection, verification and evaluation of highly sensitive information bearing on national security; e) Establishes linkages and coordinates with the various operations centers of civil and security agencies of government; f) Serves as the National Crisis Management Operations Center for various contingencies and crises. “All concerned government agencies including the intelligence units of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, and representatives from the President’s Communications Group shall provide support in manning the PSR. Other vital government agencies may be called upon to provide support as may be determined by the National Security Adviser/Director-General.," AO #2 stated. The PSR has an initial budget of P5.5 million for the purchase of office equipment and for the operations of the PSR, sourced from the Office of the President. National Security Adviser Ret. Gen. Cesar Garcia earlier said that the facility will “give the President a situational awareness of what is going on in the country that might have an impact or implication on national security." Garcia further said on a daily basis, the PSR will supply the President short briefs of ongoing events and comment on them if they are significant or not. It will also be a venue he added for a crisis management operations center in the event of a national crisis. This, he said, is where the Crisis Management Committee will convene to discuss an ongoing situation, and probably arrive at a decision on the various courses of action that are made available. – VVP, GMA News