MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has signed a law lowering the height requirement for the Philippine National Police and other uniformed services, according to a document that Malacañang released on Thursday.

Duterte signed on Wednesday the Republic Act 11549 which lowered the minimum height requirement to 1.57 meters or 5 feet 2 inches for males and 1.52 meters or 5 feet for females in the PNP, the Bureau of Fire Protection, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and the Bureau of Corrections.

The “PNP, BFP, BJMP and BuCor Height Equality Act” also waived the height requirements for applicants belonging to the cultural communities or the indigenous people.

Male and female applicants to the said services were previously required to have a height of at least 5'3" and 5'2", respectively.

"I still believe that sacrifice, dedication and service to the country cannot be measured by height nor by any physical characteristics given by the unseen hand of our Supreme Being," Sen. Ronald Dela Rosa, former PNP chief and author of the bill, said in September.

Duterte's predecessor Benigno Aquino III vetoed in 2013 bills that sought to repeal the height requirement in the uniformed services, given the nature of the jobs concerned.

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