Pulilan used to be the dumping ground of salvage victims in Bulacan in 1991. It had only 12 policemen and a disorganized barangay tanod. It was also considered the second poorest municipality among the 24 municipalities of the province. In 1992, the municipal government embarked on a 5-year development plan with the following thrusts: social service delivery, human resources and youth development, and economic development focusing on peace and order and encouragement of investors. To help attain its vision of a peaceful, self-reliant and progressive community, the municipal government reactivated the barangay tanod brigade to augment the police force composed of 17 personnel serving a 60,000 population.

      Each barangay recruited twenty volunteer barangay tanod grouped into three teams for rotation purposes headed by a tanod chief under the direct supervision of the barangay captain. The municipality had a total of 380 barangay tanods. They had set up a federation at the municipal level headed by a president accountable to the Philippine National Police station commander and to the local chief executive. The program had an annual operating budget of P1 million from the municipal fund for the P500 monthly allowance (P200 from the barangay and P300 from the municipality), insurance of all the barangay tanods (P7, 000 per barangay tanod) and their mutual aid fund of P2, 000 per bereaved family in case of death of a tanod or a member of his/her family. They were also equipped with radios for communication, flashlights, nightsticks, tear gas, and patrol jeep/tricycles. Aside from the maintenance of peace and order, the tanods were also involved in tree planting, waste management, clean-up drives, and disaster management.

      From a crime-ridden place, Pulilan rose to become a peaceful and progressive place. Crime incidence was reduced from 37% in 1992 to 10% in 1995. Crime solution efficiency was higher than that in neighboring municipalities. The improved peace and order condition coupled with its strategic location created a magnet for investors and establishment of business enterprises. Around 2,350 jobs were created and revenues of the municipality rose from P6.5 million in 1992 to P28.2 million in 1996 with locally generated revenues constituting 50 percent of its total revenues.