WHEREAS, it is proper at this time to provide for a central agency to coordinate the intelligence gathering activities of the various branches and instrumentalities of the government;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, ELPIDIO QUIRINO, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the Philippines, do hereby order that:

1. The President shall designate an officer of the Government as Coordinator of National Intelligence. He shall be charged with the proper coordination of all government activities relating to national intelligence and security, and with the preparation of national intelligence estimates.
   
   
2. All information relating to national security and intelligence obtained by or in the possession of agencies under the Departments of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Justice, National Defense, Finance, and Labor, or other branches or subdivisions of the national government, shall be referred to the Military Intelligence Service, Armed Forces of the Philippines, for proper evaluation, interpretation, and dissemination to the appropriate agency or agencies involved.
   
   
3. The Coordinator of National Intelligence is hereby authorized to call upon any department, bureau, or office, agency or instrumentality of the government for such information and assistance as he may require in the performance of his functions. The heads and chiefs of such agencies and instrumentalities shall comply strictly with any such request.
   
   
4. This Order shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila this 24th day of August in the year of our Lord, nineteen hundred and forty-eight, and of the Independence of the Philippines, the third.


By the President:
(SGD.) EMILIO ABELLO
Executive Secretary