TO: The Executive Secretary
All Department/Agency Heads
Concomitant with the organization of a corps of Presidential Regional Officers for Development (PROD) pursuant to Letters of Instructions Nos. 36 and 36-A, there is hereby established a complementary corps of Coordinating Officers for Program Execution (COPE) who shall asist the President in effecting, on a national scale, the speedy and coordinated implementation of major programs of reform particularly those included in the "PLEDGES" of Government.

The following officials and agencies are hereby designated Coordinating Officer for Program Execution (COPE) and Action Agency respectively, for each of the Major Programs indicated below:

Program

COPE

Action Agency

      Peace and Other:             Law and Order The Chief, PC DND   Administration of Justice Mr. Paciencio Magtibay,
POCC Dept. of Justice   Public Information The Chief, OCR,
GHQ, AFP DPI Land Reform: Mr. Jose Medina, Jr.,
DAR DAR Economic Development:       Price Stabilization Mr. Robert Abling,
DMS PCC   Agriculture Mr. Roberto Fronda,
DANR/NFAC DANR   Exploration and Survey Operation Mr. Luis Mirasol, Jr.,
DMS DANR   Infrastructure Mr. Carlos Leaño,
DPWTC/IOC
DPWTC   Foriegn-Assisted Project Mr. Ruben Ancheta,
PES NEDA   Industry Mr. Arnulfo Ramirez,
DMS BOI   Trade & Tourism Mr. Caser Templo,
OP DTT   Gov't Financial & Fiscal Opns. Mr. Victor Macalingcag,
DF Dept. of Finance   Cooperatives Mr. Cayetano Sarmago,
DMS DLGCD   Power Development Mr. Arthur Alvendia
DMS NPC   Rural Electrification Mr. Roberto de Ocampo,
NEA NEA   Provincial and Community Development Mr. Gregorio Vigilar,
PDAP DLGCD   Development of Moral Values thru Educational Reforms Mr. Felix Santos,
DE Dept. of Eduction   Government Reorganization Mr. Abelardo Samonte,
CR Reorg. Commission   Employment and Manpower Development Mr. Rony Diaz,
NM-YC Dept. of Labor Social Services:       Health Dr. Jesus Almonte,
DH Dept. of Health   Welfare Mr. Abraham Campo,
PES DSW   Housing and Resettlement Mr. Jaime Venago,
PAHRA PAHRA   Family Planning Mr. Conrado Lorenzo.
PopCom Population Commission

Except for the Chief, PC, whose terms of reference shall be prescribed separately by me thru the Secretary of National Defense, the duties and responsibilities of the Coordinating Officers for Program Execution designated herein shall be governed by the general policy guidelines outlined in Letter of Instruction No. 36 as well as by the following specific terms of reference:

1. Each COPE shall be under the direct supervision of the Head of the Action Agency designated for his Program, provided such Agency Head is of Cabinet rank.  Otherwise, he shall be under the direct supervision of the Executive Secretary.  The Cabinet shall serve as the coordinating body for all operational activities of the COPEs.
2. Each COPE shall, on a continuing basis, monitor the conduct and/or progress of all projects and activities that fall directly under, or are indirectly related to, the national program assigned to him; identify major problem areas and their causes; and institute or recommend the necessary corrective measures to the Action Agency concerned.
   
   
   1. The COPE is hereby empowered to cut across normal decision-making channels to secure the coordinating action/decisions required, which he shall subsequently cause to be speedily effected throughout the total system of program execution.
   2. In no case shall the COPE establish himself as a separate or distinct layer of authority through which decisions affecting program implementation must pass.
   
   
3. The COPE shall completely familiarize himself with all the projects and activities that fall directly under, or are indirectly related, the national program assigned to him.  He shall check and ensure that the policy guidelines and program of implementation established at the national level are transmitted, understood, and complied with throughout the total system of program execution.
4. The COPE shall establish a close working relationship with key officials of the various local, regional, and national government agencies who are involved, directly or indirectly, in his program of responsibility.  In problem areas where inter-agency or inter-regional coordination is a crucial factor, he is hereby empowered to call upon such officials/agencies to constitute, on an ad hoc basis, action Coordinating Teams (ACT) as may be necessary to expedite overall program implementation.
5. Directives by the COPE shall be made in the name of the Action Agency Head concerned, in writing, in a standard quick disposition form (to be prescribed) that can be readily issued and acknowledged on the spot.  All such directives shall be recorded in a log book which the COPE shall maintain for ready reference, follow-up, and periodic review by the Action Agency Head concerned, as well as by the Cabinet.

Whereas, the primary concern of the PROD designated under Letter of Instruction No. 36-A is the speedy and coordinated implementation of all priority programs on a regional basis, the primary concern of the COPS designated herein shall be the speedy and coordinated implementation of each priority program on a national scale.  Likewise whereas the PROD shall primarily be output-oriented in his approach to problems at the execution level, the COPE shall primarily be input-oriented in his approach to such problems.

There is therefore an inherent necessity, as it is hereby made a mandatory requirement, that a close-knit operational interlink be established between and among each and every COPE and PROD.  The following common and complementary terms of reference are hereby prescribed to avoid overlapping or conflicting actions.

1. In no case should either a COPE or a PROD institute or recommend corrective action without first having verified whether an identified problem area/bottleneck has already been acted upon.
2. In all cases, a COPE or a PROD shall immediately advise all officials concerned, particularly the Action Agency Head concerned, of any action taken on problem areas within his sphere of responsibility.

The terms of reference prescribed for the Executive Secretary in Letter of Instruction No. 36-A relative to the establishment of the operational system for the PROD are hereby made applicable to the COPE.  The Executive Secretary shall accordingly amend the tasks assigned to the Development Management Staff to include the compilation of Program Manuals containing a complete and up-to-date inventory of all projects and activities that fall directly under, or are indirectly related to, each of the Major Programs comprising the "PLEDGES" of Government.

The duties and responsibilities attendant to the designations made herein shall be concurrent and additional to the regular duties and responsibilities of COPEs in their respective organic assignments.  The Cabinet, thru the Executive Secretary, shall continuously monitor their workload and performance and shall submit to the President recommendations for changes in COPE---designates when the situation so warrants.

Done in the City of Manila, this 27th day of November, m the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and seventy-two.