Agreement-SEDS-2193-2023

This agreement creates the Police Industry Directorate (INPOL), a department responsible for designing, manufacturing, and distributing uniforms and equipment necessary for all members of the National Police. The new directorate will operate under the National Police and will have departments for production, quality control, logistics, and security to fulfill this mission.

Whereas the Constitution of the Republic in Article 293 states: "The National Police is a professional permanent institution of the State, apolitical in the partisan sense, of a purely civil nature, charged with ensuring the preservation of public order, the prevention, control and combat of crime; protecting the security of persons and their property; executing the resolutions, dispositions, mandates and legal decisions of authorities and public officials, all with strict respect for human rights. The National Police shall be governed by special legislation".

Whereas the Constitution of the Republic in Articles 321 and 323 respectively establish: Article 321: "The servants of the State have no more powers than those expressly granted to them by law. Any act executed outside the law is null and implies responsibility"; "Article 323. Officials are custodians of authority, legally responsible for their official conduct, subject to the law and never superior to it. No official or employee, civil or military, is obligated to comply with illegal orders or those that imply the commission of a crime".

Whereas Article 29, numeral 4 of the General Law of Public Administration establishes: "The Secretaries of State shall have the following fundamental competencies: … Security: Those concerning the formulation of national policy on internal security and programs, plans, projects and security strategies; matters relating to the restoration of public order for peaceful and harmonious coexistence; the prevention, investigation and combat of crimes, violations and infractions; the security of persons, in their life, honor, beliefs, freedoms, property and rights; assistance in the preservation of the environment, public morality and state property; migratory control in its aspects of security, prevention and repression of illegal or clandestine immigration, trafficking of illegal emigrants; criminal investigation; the regulation and control of private security services; the registry and control of weapons and explosives; the custody and administration of Penitentiary Centers for adults and the custody of Social Reintegration Centers for Minor Offenders; assistance to public powers and the direction and administration of the National Police".

Whereas the General Law of Public Administration, in its Article 36, numerals 1) and 8) establishes that common attributions and duties of the Secretaries of State are: "To issue Agreements and Resolutions in matters of their competency and those delegated to them by the President of the Republic and to ensure their execution. The signature of the Secretaries of State, in these cases shall be authorized by the respective General Secretaries".

Whereas by EXECUTIVE AGREEMENT No. 155-2023 dated June 21, 2023, the Constitutional President of the Republic appointed the Citizen HÉCTOR GUSTAVO SÁNCHEZ VELÁSQUEZ to the position of Secretary of State in the Office of Security.

Whereas the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras, in its Article 4 establishes: "OTHER DEPENDENCIES. THE SECRETARIAT has the structure with the dependencies established in this Law or its Regulations, as well as those determined by the Secretary of State in the Office of Security, upon prior Technical Recommendation of the Police Strategic Board, for those dependencies linked to the operational level of police activity".

Whereas the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras, in its Article 7, numerals 1, 4, 5, 7, 19 and 20 states: "FUNCTIONS OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF SECURITY. In addition to those set forth in other laws, it corresponds to the Head of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security: 1) To comply with and ensure compliance with the Constitution of the Republic, Treaties and International Conventions ratified by Honduras, Laws, Regulations and other applicable legal provisions within the scope of their functions; …4) To ensure the proper functioning of THE SECRETARIAT and the National Police; 5) To manage, execute and administer the Budget of THE SECRETARIAT approved by the Legislative Branch and, to supervise the execution of the Budget assigned to the National Police; …7) To issue general directives of an administrative, budgetary and functional nature of THE SECRETARIAT and the National Police; …19) To develop and implement Social Welfare and Health Policies, both for officials of THE SECRETARIAT and for members of the Police Career; and, 20) Those others that by reason of their position are in accordance with the Law and its regulations".

Whereas the General Regulation of the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras, in its Article 9 states: "TECHNICAL REPORT. To create, modify, merge or eliminate dependencies linked to the Operational Level of THE SECRETARIAT which corresponds to THE POLICE, the Secretary of State must require a Technical Report from the Police Strategic Board. Such Technical Report must contain an analysis of the causes justifying the modification, the purpose, administrative feasibility, impact and an estimate of the operating costs when there is the Creation of a new body of THE POLICE, which must have the corresponding budgetary availability and under the understanding that a new body must not be created when it implies duplication of functions with other existing ones".

Whereas the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras, in its Article 44 states: "CREATION OF DEPENDENCIES. The Director General of the National Police may request the Secretary of State in the Office of Security so that through an agreement they may create, eliminate, modify and merge the Directorates, Divisions, Departments, Sections, Units and other Dependencies that are necessary for the better organization and functioning of the National Police, according to the needs of the service, for which they may request Technical Recommendation of the Police Strategic Board".

Whereas Article 11, numeral 5) of the Police Career Law establishes: "The following are rights of members of the Police Career: 1), 2), 3), 4), 5) The uniform, clothing, weapons and other equipment necessary for the performance of their functions, which must be provided by the Secretary of State in the Office of Security…".

Whereas the Police Career Law, in its Article 63 establishes: "UNIFORM, the uniform of the National Police constitutes an honor and a source of pride for its members and whoever uses or wears it must do so with decorum, dignity and ethics, in accordance with what is stipulated in the respective Regulation, understood as such, shirt, pants, headwear, insignia, shoes, authorized boots and it is the responsibility of the High Police Command to provide the same in an annual allocation".

Whereas the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras, in its Article 57, establishes: "FUNCTIONS OF THE POLICE STRATEGIC BOARD. The Police Strategic Board has the following functions: 1) To advise, analyze, design and present possible courses of action for decision-making, strategies on plans and programs both administrative and operational in execution; …5) To advise on the advisability in relation to the Creation, Elimination or Merger of Police Dependencies, according to the needs of the service".

Whereas by TECHNICAL OPINION DGPN-DEP dated November 16, 2023, issued by the Police Strategic Board, it was established that the POLICE INDUSTRY DIRECTORATE (INPOL) should be created as a support directorate, responsible for developing the design, production and provision of police uniforms necessary for the performance of the function and identification of police members, which shall operate under the coordination and command of the Director General of the National Police.

Whereas Article 23 of the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras and Article 26 of its General Regulation which among other things states: "The Administrative Management, for the efficient performance of its attributions is in charge of the direction, coordination and supervision… of the Budget Sub-management" and Article 28 of the General Regulation of the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras which states: "The Budget Sub-management is in charge of administering, directing, controlling and preparing the budget assigned to THE SECRETARIAT and monitoring its execution, as well as efficiently maintaining the accounting and financial records of resources, the review and control of spending, in accordance with general budget provisions and other applicable regulations".

Whereas the Legal Services Unit of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security, by LEGAL OPINION SEDS-USL-470-2023 dated December 8, 2023, issued an opinion on the appropriateness of the Creation of the Police Industry Directorate (INPOL) by virtue of the fact that in accordance with the MEMORANDUM SEDS-No.2356-2023, dated November 27, 2023, the Secretary of State in the Office of Security instructed that the procedure corresponding to law be continued, attaching the SESSION RECORD OF THE POLICE STRATEGIC BOARD and TECHNICAL OPINION DGPN-DEP for the creation: …of the Police Industry Directorate (INPOL)…, complying with the legal mandate contained in Article 4 of the Organic Law of the Secretary of State in the Office of Security and the National Police of Honduras which literally states: "THE SECRETARIAT has the structure with the dependencies established in this Law or its Regulations, as well as those determined by the Secretary of State in the Office of Security, upon prior technical recommendation of the Police Strategic Board, for those dependencies linked to the operational level of police activity" and in accordance with the provisions of Articles 9 and 57, numeral 5 of the aforementioned Organic Law SEDS which states: "TECHNICAL REPORT. To create, modify, merge or eliminate dependencies linked to the Operational Level of THE SECRETARIAT which corresponds to THE POLICE, the Secretary of State must require a Technical Report from the Police Strategic Board...".