Philippine military assures ‘no vacuum’ over top officer’s retirement

Senior Philippine officers from the armed forces have emphasised continuity among the military leadership, with the expected retirement of chief of staff General Romeo Brawner Jnr coming at a sensitive moment for President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr. The transition comes as Manila continues to face pressure from Beijing in the South China Sea and calls from several retired officers for the military to reconsider its support for Marcos. Whoever Marcos appoints to replace Brawner has to ensure that the armed forces can focus on combating external threats and insulate themselves from domestic political turmoil, according to military officers. “Even if there is a change of command and positions, there will be no leadership vacuum,” Colonel Francel Margareth Padilla, the spokeswoman for the Philippine military, told This Week in Asia. Padilla pointed out that the military would always have an officer in charge even if a particular senior post was vacant. “There will always be continuity of effort.” Brawner, who is restricted by law to serve a maximum of three years, is set to retire on Tuesday. His likely exit comes while the Philippine Congress, which confirms the appointment of all senior military officers through a powerful 24-member commission, will be in recess until July 25. Any such confirmation could be delayed until August as the new 21st Congress would still have to elect the commission’s members, 12 from each chamber. The gap between the president’s nomination for the post and confirmation by the commission is taking place as Manila faces two major challenges on the military front. Chinese warships continue to patrol the waters the Philippine considers its territory, as tensions between both sides remain high in the disputed South China Sea. Meanwhile, retired military officers allied with Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio have urged the armed forces leadership to break the chain of command and withdraw support from Marcos. The choice of the next military chief is therefore crucial for government stability and deterrence against Beijing’s increasingly assertive moves in the South China Sea, senior officers have said. Colonel Xerxes Trinidad, the Philippine military’s public affairs chief, reiterated that “it is the sole prerogative of the president who will be choosing the next chief of staff”. Padilla said the list of nominees would come from the military’s Board of Generals headed by Brawner. According to sources, the board has deliberated on the list of nominees to be sent to Marcos. Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnr can also submit his own nominees. Teodoro and Brawner have said they did not discuss with Marcos who the next chief of staff would be during their command conference with him on July 7. Pulitzer Prize-winning veteran journalist Manuel Mogato said there would be “no vacuum” during the selection process. He pointed out that the constitution empowers the president to make interim appointments while Congress is in recess. Among the names that Mogato said he had heard as potential candidates were Antonio Gustilo Nafarrete, the army’s commanding general, and Arthur Mirasol Cordura, the air force’s commanding general, both holding the rank of lieutenant general. The president could even consider widening his pool of candidates by appointing someone with the rank of colonel, but this was rarely done previously as it could stir unrest within the military, Mogato said. Apart from considering a candidate’s rank and performance record, the president would also weigh the political impact of his choice, he added. Some Mindanao provinces in the Bangsamoro region would hold their first-ever elections in September, giving Nafarrete an edge as the army chief once served as commander of the military’s Western Mindanao Command, Mogato said. Nafarrete’s origin in Pangasinan, a province in the Ilocos region that is the traditional stronghold of the Marcos family, would also be an advantage for him, according to Mogato. But the state of the army on the home front could also be a factor to consider in the selection process, with Nafarrete’s soldiers facing a declining threat from the communist New People’s Army and from the Islamic terrorist group Abu Sayyaf, Mogato said. Instead, the army under Nafarrete had been focusing more on external defence, including buying BrahMos missiles and drones, Mogato added. As for Cordura, he also stands a good chance given that the air force is a key part of the military’s emphasis on external defence and maritime security, according to Mogato. Paying tribute to Brawner, Mogato said that the outgoing chief of staff was instrumental in maintaining the chain of command amid pressure in some quarters to withdraw the military’s support from the president. “He kept his professionalism and he kept the military institution from being politicised. So I think that’s one of his achievements.” .

Philippine military assures ‘no vacuum’ over top officer’s retirement

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The transition comes at a sensitive time due to ongoing tensions in the South China Sea and Manila’s row with some retired officers over Marcos

The transition comes at a sensitive time due to ongoing tensions in the South China Sea and Manila’s row with some retired officers over Marcos