WHEREAS, Presidential Decree No. 1275 was issued with the end in view of improving the quality of prosecution services through the re-structuring of the entire prosecution system, the regionalization of the service, and the rationalization of salaries of all State Prosecutors, Provincial Fiscals and City Fiscals and their Assistants; and

WHEREAS, there is a need to implement such Decree as soon as possible consistent with a smooth transition from the old set-up to the New national Prosecution Service;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, do hereby order and direct the following:

1. The implementation of the salary rates provided in P.D. No, 1275 shall be by stages or phases in view of the large amount required to implement fully the salary rates; pending the implementation of the full salary rates, the following salary scale shall apply to the State Prosecutors, Provincial Fiscals, City Fiscals and their Assistants:
   
   

   Step / Grade		1	2	3	4	5	6	7
   Special		40,000	per annum
   Special		38,800	per annum
   X		30,240	31,740	33,240	34,740	36,240	37,600
   IX		27,720	29,220	30,720	32,220	33,720	35,220	36,400
   VIII		26,520	28,020	29,520	31,020	32,520	34,020	35,200
   VII		25,320	36,820	28,320	29,820	31,320	32,820	34,000
   VI		24,120	25,620	27,120	28,620	30,120	31,620	32,800
   V		22,920	24,420	25,920	27,420	28,920	30,420	31,600
   IV		21,720	23,220	24,720	26,220	27,720	29,220	30,400
   III		20,520	22,020	23,520	25,020	26,520	28,020	29,200
   II		19,320	20,820	22,320	23,820	25,320	26,820	28,000
   I		18,120	19,620	21,120	22,620	24,120	25,620	26,800

   
   
2. The Secretary of Justice shall coordinate with the Commissioner of the Budget in developing standards and criteria for classifying positions of State Prosecutors and Fiscals and fixing their salaries using as basis the functions, duties, responsibilities and qualifications requirements of positions; that pending the adoption of such a system the following classes may be used in classifying positions of State Prosecutors in the National Prosecution Service:
   
   

   State Prosecutor I	Grade I
   State Prosecutor II	Grade II
   State Prosecutor III	Grade III
   State Prosecutor IV	Grade IV
   State Prosecutor V	Grade V
   State Prosecutor VI	Grade VI
   State Prosecutor VII	Grade VII
   State Prosecutor VIII	Grade VIII
   Senior State Prosecutor I	Grade IX
   Senior State Prosecutor II	Grade X
   Assistant Regional State Prosecutor	Grade X
   Regional State Prosecutor	Grade XI
   Assistant Chief State Prosecutor	Grade XI
   Chief State Prosecutor	Special Grade

   
   
3. Pending the adoption of that new system mentioned in Paragraph 2 herein of classifying and compensating Fiscals on the basis of functions, duties, responsibilities and qualifications required, their salaries shall be fixed in accordance with the class of the city or province of assignment.  The following classes and grades shall be used in the initial implementation of the Decree:
   
   

   First Class A Province and Cities Execpt Manila, Pasay City, Quezon City and Caloocan City
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade X
   First Assistant		Grade IX
   Second Assistant		Grade VIII
   Third Assistant		Grade VII
   Fourth Assistant		Grade VI
   Other Assistant		Grade V
   First Class B Provinces and Cities
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade IX
   First Assistant		Grade VIII
   Second Assistant		Grade VII
   Third Assistant		Grade VI
   Fourth Assistant		Grade V
   Other Assistant		Grade IV
   First Class C Provinces and Cities
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade VIII
   First Assistant		Grade VII
   Second Assistant		Grade VI
   Third Assistant		Grade V
   Fourth Assistant
   Second Class Provinces and Cities
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade VII
   First Assistant		Grade VI
   Second Assistant		Grade V
   Third Assistant		Grade IV
   Third Class Provinces and Cities
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade VI
   First Assistant		Grade V
   Second Assistant		Grade IV
   Third Assistant		Grade III
   Fourth Class Provinces and Cities
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade V
   First Assistant		Grade IV
   Second Assistant		Grade III
   Fifth Class Provinces and Cities
   Provincial/City Fiscal		Grade IV
   First Assistant		Grade III
   For the Cities of Manila, Quezon City, Pasay City and Caloocan City
   City Fiscal	Special Grade	P38,800
   First Assistant	Grade X
   Second Assistant	Grade IX
   Third Assistant	Grade VIII
   Fourth Assistant	Grade VII
   Other Assistants	Grade VI



4. Within a reasonable time from the issuance of this Letter of Implementation, the Secretary of Justice shall prepare a Staffing Pattern for the New National Prosecution Service and submit the sane to the Office of the President through the Budget Commission taking into consideration the personnel and the positions required by the Service; that upon approval of that Staffing Pattern all positions currently existing in the Prosecution Service of the Department of Justice, and all positions of Provincial Fiscal, City Fiscal, their assistants whose appointments are vested in the President shall be considered abolished and all present incumbents separated from the service unless re-appointed by the President in accordance with existing appointment procedures for State Prosecutors and Fiscals.
   
5. In the initial implementation of the Decree, all appointments shall be placed at the minimum of the salary grade.
   
6. It shall be understood that Staff Members and employees of the Department of Justice and the Office of the Solicitor General are employees and staff members of the Executive Branch, Hence, they shall be covered by salary rules and regulations of the Executive Branch. When Judicial ranks are used by reference to give prestige to a position in the National Prosecution Service or the Department of Justice, such rank should not be used as basis for applying salary rates or emoluments applicable to positions in the Judicial Branch.
   
7. Other Prosecution Attorneys whose appointment is lodged in the Secretary of Justice as well as administrative, supportive personnel and other positions not covered by this Letter of Implementation shall be covered by National Classification and Pay Plans under Presidential Decree No. 985. Fending the classification by the OCPC, Prosecution Attorneys may be paid at the rate of P15,000 per annum.
   
8. All officers and employees who may be separated or removed from the service by reason of the reorganization authorized herein shall be granted a gratuity at a rate equivalent to one month's salary for every year of continuous satisfactory service rendered, or the equivalent nearest fraction thereof favorable to them on the basis of the highest salary received: PROVIDED, That any such officer or employee already entitled to gratuity or pension under existing law shall have the option to select between said gratuity or pension and the gratuity provided for in this Decree.
   
9. A staffing pattern shall be developed jointly by the Secretary of Justice and the Commissioner of the Budget to implement the new organization, provided that no new positions are created thereby.
   
10. The Secretary of Justice shall prepare a plan for smooth transition towards the new Prosecution service, to ensure continuity in the handling of pending cases despite this reorganization.

Salary adjustments shall be made effective no earlier than April 1, 1978.

Done in the City of Manila, this 11th day of April, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and seventy-eight.

			(Sgd.) FERDINAND E. MARCOS
			President
			Republic of the Philippines
	By the President:
	(Sgd.) JACOBO C. CLAVE
	Presidential Executive Assistant