IN less than a week, President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. will become the new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). His appointee, retired General Jose Faustino Jr., will also take the helm of the Department of National Defense (DND).
For some military officials, both the Commander-in-Chief and Faustino’s incoming stewardship of the defense and military establishment may be rough, if not troublesome, as a result of the recently enacted three-year fixed term in the AFP, which, if not properly handled, may even run the risk of resurrecting adventurism in the military.
“Unless the law is fully explained now down the line and the soldiers are pacified and reassured in the process, grumblings and adventurism are real possibilities,” one senior officer who asked not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue told the BusinessMirror.
According to him, the military is currently facing territorial challenge in the West Philippine Sea, while at the same time waging internal security operations, and as such, it could not afford to have a demoralized or, much worse, an adventurist force that may threaten the stability of the Marcos administration.
The signs
THIS early, there have been signs of “restiveness” in the military, although publicly unnoticed, due to concerns by soldiers on the effects of the three-year fixed term, or Republic Act 11709, on their careers and promotions, especially officers who are graduates of the Philippine Military Academy, the primary source of “commissionship” into the AFP.
From junior to senior officers, former graduates of the country’s premier military school were talking and meeting in groups and by classes where concerns about the impact and bearing of the recently enacted law on their future and into the military institution as a whole were being discussed.
The concerns, as voiced out in group discussions, were more evident at the level of senior officers, especially those who have made projections for their careers up in the ladder of the military hierarchy.
Officers who joined the military outside of the PMA, and even enlisted personnel, the BusinessMirror was told, were also worried about the possible impact of the law on their careers.
For them, the law is replete with inconsistencies, has unclear or questionable provisions and even favors only senior officers.
Best solution?
OUTGOING President Rodrigo Duterte signed in April this year RA 11709, or the “Act Strengthening Professionalism and Promoting the Continuity of Policies and Modernization Initiatives in the Armed Forces of the Philippines by Prescribing Fixed Terms for Key Officers thereof, Increasing the Mandatory Retirement Age of Generals/flag Officers, Providing for a More Effective Attrition System, and Providing Funds therefor.”
When Malacañang announced last month the signing of RA 11709 in April, both the leaderships of the DND and the AFP welcomed it, with Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana explaining the ramifications of the new law.
“The principal objective of this law is to allow general officers sufficient time, i.e., three years time-in-grade, to do their jobs. If they are not promoted to the next higher grade, they are retired. This ensures that only the best officers ascend the ladder of leadership. This also puts an end to the revolving door system in the AFP leadership that resulted from the retirement law passed in 1979,” Lorenzana said.
Lorenzana, an ardent supporter of RA 11709, said the law would limit the number of general officers to “0.01 percentum of the AFP’s total strength and will reduce the number of its general officers from the present 196 to 153, which we believe is the optimal number of generals to efficiently and competently lead the AFP.”
‘Too many’ stars
BEFORE the law was passed and while it was being deliberated upon last year, Lorenzana told the Senate that there have been too many generals in the AFP. The ideal ratio, he said, should be a one-star rank officer for every 1,500 soldiers or, at the least, one general for 1,000 personnel.
“Our strength is 143,000. That means we should only have 143 generals in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. I believe, personally, that we have too many generals in the Armed Forces,” he said at that time.
The AFP said RA 11709 will bring stability to the organization as it ensures only those qualified will ascend the ladder of leadership while ending the revolving door policy, thus ensuring the implementation and continuity of its plans and programs.
“This shall make the AFP a more efficient and effective organization and will contribute to the realization of our vision of a more credible Armed Forces which is a source of national pride,” it said through its spokesman Col. Ramon Zagala.
Under the law, the three-year fixed term covers the posts of chief of staff; vice chief of staff; deputy chief of staff; commanding generals of the Army and the Air Force; flag officer of the Navy; AFP inspector general; and the heads of the area commands, unless their tour of duties are terminated by the President.
The military currently has six area commands and these are the Northern and Southern Luzon Commands, the Central Command, which has reverted to its old name as Visayas Command, the Eastern Mindanao Command, Western Mindanao Command and the Western Command, which is based in Palawan.
RA 11709 also mandated a four-year tour of duty for the superintendent of the Philippine Military Academy, who should have the rank of a lieutenant general or the equivalent rank in the Navy, which is vice admiral, and whose age should not be more than 58.
Those occupying the positions covered by the three-year fixed term and even the superintendent of the PMA must be retired upon the completion of their tours of duty. The only exception is when a senior officer holding a three-year term is promoted or elevated as chief of staff.
The law explicitly provided that officers holding the ranks of second lieutenant or ensign in the Navy up to colonel or captain in the Navy and enlisted personnel, who form the bulk of the troops, would be compulsory retired after rendering 30 years of service or upon reaching the age of 56.
On the other hand, senior officers or those holding the ranks of brigadier general or commodore in the Navy up to lieutenant general or vice admiral in the Navy will be retired upon reaching the age of 59.
‘Unequal treatment’
THE “unequal treatment” in the age of retirement in the military between senior officers and those of enlisted personnel, junior and middle-grade officers was among the gripes of personnel who said it gives preferential treatment to senior military commanders.
“If the aim of RA 11709 is to professionalize the military, then the least…it should do is not to create a division among the ranks by virtue of age or service retirement. The retirement age of 59 should cover us all; if not, then let us stick to the old and original mandatory retirement age which is 56,” one middle grade officer said.
A senior officer, however, said that for years, the military has pushed for reforms, professionalization in the ranks and a stop to the revolving-door policy through a three-year fixed term for senior positions, which was not able to go through Congress. And now that a law was passed, as soldiers, they should follow the line.
However, another senior officer questioned the wisdom behind the fixed three-year term, since this will stall the promotion and movement of officers down the line, thus affecting the morale and welfare of the officer corps.
“We understand if the three-year term will cover the post of chief of staff since he is the overall commander, but to stall or secure the nonmovement of senior officers in the other key positions, it will freeze the promotion in the senior level,” he said.
“Remember, the law says three years,” he said.
The senior officer said that if there is no movement in key positions, and then it would ultimately affect other ranks and positions, thus resulting in faster and higher rate of attrition.
“This is not the way to professionalize the ranks and recognize the sacrifices of our so-called heroes,” he said.
Soldiers, especially junior and middle-grade officers, should be promoted within three years after their last promotion, otherwise they would be covered by the military’s attrition law and forced out of service.
The attrition law has been a headache for the Army during the past years, as most would-be officers joining the military prefer the Army as their branch of service.
The three-year term, some of the officers noted, did not take into account the yearly number of PMA graduates being incorporated into the AFP officer corps, most of whom also choose the Army.
Another senior officer said the three-year term will affect seniority, which is both sacred and a long-held tradition in the military, since if officers are designated in the positions that it covers, they should not be less than 56 years of age, thus bypassing their senior officers, who happen to still have one or two years remaining in service.
Promotion and professionalism were among the reasons that compelled the Magdalo, whose members include former Navy Lt. Senior Grade Antonio Trillanes IV and other young officers, to launch a mutiny during the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
The same reasons, including discontent, also drove senior Army Scout Rangers and Marines to go against the Arroyo government, which ended in a standoff at the Marine headquarters at Fort Bonifacio.
Promotion, professionalism, factionalism and other causes were likewise among the compelling reasons behind the military coups during the administrations of former Presidents Ferdinand E. Marcos and Corazon Aquino.
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