AN official of the National Police Commission yesterday advised examinees not to take the Philippine National Police entrance examination lightly.

Napolcom Vice Chairman and Executive Officer Eduardo Escueta was concerned over the dismal result of last year’s PNP entrance examinations.

“Examinees should never take the test for granted and instead prepare for it to make sure that they pass,” Escueta said.

The Napolcom official’s statement came a few days after Napolcom released the results of the PNP entrance exam that it administered on October 23, 2011.

Out of 21,097 police aspirants who took the exam nationwide, only 838 or 3.97 percent passed—the lowest passing rate in history.

Escueta said the dismal success rate of the last exams may be due to some individuals’ notion that the PNP entrance exam is “as easy as 1-2-3”.

“Being a police officer is a decent profession. Thus, those who want to join the police force must treat the entrance examinations seriously. Napolcom is out to make sure that only the best and the brightest can enter the PNP,” he said.

The previous lowest mark was in the October 23, 2005 entrance exams when a passing rate of 4.80 percent was recorded.

Napolcom has administrative control and operational supervision over the PNP. The agency-administered entrance test is a requirement for initial appointment to the rank of Police Officer 1 (PO1).

According to Escueta, the Commission is continuously upgrading the standards of its police examinations in line with its sustained effort to professionalize the PNP.

“The Commission is at the forefront in the campaign for an improved quality of police service,” the official said.