Opinion piece in the Manila Times (Dec 25, 2022): Reforms needed in the AFP (By Maj. Gen. Edgard A. Arevalo Ret.)
Philippine military personnel march in front of the national flag during the 87th anniversary celebration of the Armed Forces of the Philippines at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City on Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. AFP PHOTO
ON December 22, nearly nine decades since its birth in 1935, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has filled its many pages with colorful stories of gallantry and heroism of its soldiers. While modestly armed and poorly equipped, its forebears comprising the Philippine expeditionary forces to Korea in 1950, the Philippine civic action group in Vietnam in 1964, and many other United Nations peacekeeping missions around the globe earned for the Filipino soldiers their lofty place in the world's military history. American general Douglas MacArthur, moved by the incredible resilience and indomitable courage of this brand of soldiers said, "Give me ten thousand Filipinos and I will conquer the world."
The battles that the AFP's soldiers fought knew no distinction. From the Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon to the Bagong Hukbong Bayan, the secessionist Moro National Liberation Front to the autonomy-seeking Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the extremist Abu Sayyaf Group to the Daesh-inspired Dawlah Islamia, the troops' unfaltering devotion as torchbearers of peace never reneged on fighting any war to attain the peace. Be it in some distant and lonely posts in the South Philippine Sea, in the boondocks or the concrete jungles of our country, the AFP's contribution to world peace, national security and stability is just phenomenal.
It is not surprising that the AFP is among the Top 10 performing non-business organizations in the Philippines cited by the Makati Business Club's executive outlook survey in 2019. It has also consistently garnered high satisfaction ratings in Social Weather Stations polls since that year. The Armed Forces obtained, too, the highest trust and approval ratings among government agencies in the Pahayag survey conducted by PUBLiCUS Asia in 2022. For these feats, the nation proudly salutes every soldier, airman, sailor, marine, reservist and civilian human resource of the AFP on its 87th founding anniversary.
Underneath the veneer
The fact that the AFP continues to function and accomplish its mission with distinction is a testament to its resilience and capacity to tuck its internal issues in. But the prevailing situation in the designation and promotion, mainly in and near the apex of the organization, has sorely divided the military. Those who have no political backing were disillusioned. Rather than being corrupted, they are opting to leave the military service with their dignity intact. Those who have resigned to the fate that the malpractice has engulfed the organization have reoriented their moral compasses and played by the emergent rules. And those who cannot take either may likely consider another way of reforming the AFP.
In my past articles, I wrote about how the military suffers in silence as a result of the intemperate and reckless meddling of politicians in the designation to key positions and in the promotion of senior officers. I did not expect it, but the op-ed pieces have hit home across all levels in the AFP's corps of officers both active and retired. The messages I received ranged from encouragement to expressions of gratitude, to laments of what is happening in the upper echelons of the organization, to shooting the messenger. Significantly though, they admit that the malpractice did not only corrupt the established norms, systems and processes, but also undermine the culture of excellence and professionalism in the Philippine military. Instead of meritocracy, it became kleptocracy of the soldier's morals by some shrewd politicians to serve the latter's selfish ends.
What began as benign "pakiusap" became malignant political pressure and undue influence that have metastasized to engulf the organizational being. Junior officers who were taught leadership principles in schools that leaders should "set the example" — good example — saw rotten ones instead. Middle grade officers who were made to realize that in aspiring to be "technically and tactically proficient" there will be competition, healthy, professional contests, saw bitter rivalries. Senior officers who were just about ready to succeed in top AFP posts saw cunning instead of maturity and servant leadership. It must have brought serious disappointments to these subordinate leaders to see their former tactical officers and mentors squabbling and rushing for priority in rank and position. They must be aghast to see their role models succumb to political accommodations to get to the top of the totem pole. It bewilders them why would generals and flag officers in the twilight of their military careers, when their thoughts should be how the AFP will be better after they have retired, will set aside their integrity in exchange for the wheeling and dealing of political patronage.
What can be resolved to be done
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Commander in Chief of the AFP, is a politico sui generis — a politician like no one else. He has eminent powers and prerogatives being the Chief Executive to ensure that the AFP is insulated from political interference that tends to make the military beholden to politicians. We can only beseech him to exert his strong influence over his colleagues to leave the process of selection and promotion to the AFP and allow the organization to resolve its internal issues. He owes a nation of 113 million Filipinos a stable, mature and professional military. Only then can he be assured of a military leadership solely focused on fighting against enemies of the State and mission accomplishment, whose priority is national security, sovereignty and territorial integrity — not the squabble for position or promotion or job security.
The AFP chief of staff being the highest-ranking general has both the authority and the burden to cleanse the ranks. This means that it is incumbent upon him to keep only the most competent and best qualified officers and enlisted personnel and allow the weeding out of those who fall short of the demands of the rank and position. He himself must be resolute in enforcing policies and regulations with no regard to classmate or townmate, friendship or kinship that would cloud his objectivity. Admittedly, this is not easy to do in an organization that thrives on camaraderie. But the AFP's leader must be resolved to enforce policy regulations if he wants to professionalize the organization even if it means being lonely at the top. Leadership, after all, is not a contest for popularity.
Weeding out processes
The inconsistent and non-uniform application of many AFP policies is partly to blame for problems that beset the military today. One of the policies deal with professional military education for officers and enlisted personnel before they can be promoted to the next higher rank or designated to a higher position. These are called career courses that not only provide much-needed academic and leadership training demanded by the rank and position, but also a natural attrition process for those who fail to measure up to the stiff requirements of the courses. In the end, only the officers and enlisted personnel who are best qualified to serve the AFP in a certain rank and position should be retained.
One of these policies demands that an officer must be among the upper quartile of the graduating class in a lower career course before he can advance to the next higher career course. The completion of the latter course, in turn, becomes a prerequisite for designation and subsequent promotion in rank of the officer. Unfortunately, this applies only to career courses offered by allied countries and conducted abroad.
It is high time that the AFP consider the drafting of a policy on career courses offered locally that are taken by roughly 90 percent of the officers. This policy may require a higher level of academic standing, say upper 50 percent of the graduating class, before the officer can be recommended to take up the next higher career course.
This and a few other weeding out processes designed to retain only officers and enlisted personnel who have shown fitness to remain in the service will be concluded and detailed in the next issues. But lest I forget, it is Christmas Day.
Let us all be reminded that redemption came to Christendom when the Son of Man humbled himself to be Emmanuel and become our Savior. May the humility of the birth of Christ Jesus be our beacon. That it is not what material possessions we have or the gifts we give or receive that matter, but the joy we have in our hearts in our being together as a family, as an armed force, as a nation.
May our Christmas be merry and blessed.
ON December 22, nearly nine decades since its birth in 1935, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has filled its many pages with colorful stories of gallantry and heroism of its soldiers. While modestly armed and poorly equipped, its forebears comprising the Philippine expeditionary forces to Korea in 1950, the Philippine civic action group in Vietnam in 1964, and many other United Nations peacekeeping missions around the globe earned for the Filipino soldiers their lofty place in the world's military history. American general Douglas MacArthur, moved by the incredible resilience and indomitable courage of this brand of soldiers said, "Give me ten thousand Filipinos and I will conquer the world."
The battles that the AFP's soldiers fought knew no distinction. From the Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon to the Bagong Hukbong Bayan, the secessionist Moro National Liberation Front to the autonomy-seeking Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the extremist Abu Sayyaf Group to the Daesh-inspired Dawlah Islamia, the troops' unfaltering devotion as torchbearers of peace never reneged on fighting any war to attain the peace. Be it in some distant and lonely posts in the South Philippine Sea, in the boondocks or the concrete jungles of our country, the AFP's contribution to world peace, national security and stability is just phenomenal.
It is not surprising that the AFP is among the Top 10 performing non-business organizations in the Philippines cited by the Makati Business Club's executive outlook survey in 2019. It has also consistently garnered high satisfaction ratings in Social Weather Stations polls since that year. The Armed Forces obtained, too, the highest trust and approval ratings among government agencies in the Pahayag survey conducted by PUBLiCUS Asia in 2022. For these feats, the nation proudly salutes every soldier, airman, sailor, marine, reservist and civilian human resource of the AFP on its 87th founding anniversary.
Underneath the veneer
The fact that the AFP continues to function and accomplish its mission with distinction is a testament to its resilience and capacity to tuck its internal issues in. But the prevailing situation in the designation and promotion, mainly in and near the apex of the organization, has sorely divided the military. Those who have no political backing were disillusioned. Rather than being corrupted, they are opting to leave the military service with their dignity intact. Those who have resigned to the fate that the malpractice has engulfed the organization have reoriented their moral compasses and played by the emergent rules. And those who cannot take either may likely consider another way of reforming the AFP.
In my past articles, I wrote about how the military suffers in silence as a result of the intemperate and reckless meddling of politicians in the designation to key positions and in the promotion of senior officers. I did not expect it, but the op-ed pieces have hit home across all levels in the AFP's corps of officers both active and retired. The messages I received ranged from encouragement to expressions of gratitude, to laments of what is happening in the upper echelons of the organization, to shooting the messenger. Significantly though, they admit that the malpractice did not only corrupt the established norms, systems and processes, but also undermine the culture of excellence and professionalism in the Philippine military. Instead of meritocracy, it became kleptocracy of the soldier's morals by some shrewd politicians to serve the latter's selfish ends.
What began as benign "pakiusap" became malignant political pressure and undue influence that have metastasized to engulf the organizational being. Junior officers who were taught leadership principles in schools that leaders should "set the example" — good example — saw rotten ones instead. Middle grade officers who were made to realize that in aspiring to be "technically and tactically proficient" there will be competition, healthy, professional contests, saw bitter rivalries. Senior officers who were just about ready to succeed in top AFP posts saw cunning instead of maturity and servant leadership. It must have brought serious disappointments to these subordinate leaders to see their former tactical officers and mentors squabbling and rushing for priority in rank and position. They must be aghast to see their role models succumb to political accommodations to get to the top of the totem pole. It bewilders them why would generals and flag officers in the twilight of their military careers, when their thoughts should be how the AFP will be better after they have retired, will set aside their integrity in exchange for the wheeling and dealing of political patronage.
What can be resolved to be done
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Commander in Chief of the AFP, is a politico sui generis — a politician like no one else. He has eminent powers and prerogatives being the Chief Executive to ensure that the AFP is insulated from political interference that tends to make the military beholden to politicians. We can only beseech him to exert his strong influence over his colleagues to leave the process of selection and promotion to the AFP and allow the organization to resolve its internal issues. He owes a nation of 113 million Filipinos a stable, mature and professional military. Only then can he be assured of a military leadership solely focused on fighting against enemies of the State and mission accomplishment, whose priority is national security, sovereignty and territorial integrity — not the squabble for position or promotion or job security.
The AFP chief of staff being the highest-ranking general has both the authority and the burden to cleanse the ranks. This means that it is incumbent upon him to keep only the most competent and best qualified officers and enlisted personnel and allow the weeding out of those who fall short of the demands of the rank and position. He himself must be resolute in enforcing policies and regulations with no regard to classmate or townmate, friendship or kinship that would cloud his objectivity. Admittedly, this is not easy to do in an organization that thrives on camaraderie. But the AFP's leader must be resolved to enforce policy regulations if he wants to professionalize the organization even if it means being lonely at the top. Leadership, after all, is not a contest for popularity.
Weeding out processes
The inconsistent and non-uniform application of many AFP policies is partly to blame for problems that beset the military today. One of the policies deal with professional military education for officers and enlisted personnel before they can be promoted to the next higher rank or designated to a higher position. These are called career courses that not only provide much-needed academic and leadership training demanded by the rank and position, but also a natural attrition process for those who fail to measure up to the stiff requirements of the courses. In the end, only the officers and enlisted personnel who are best qualified to serve the AFP in a certain rank and position should be retained.
One of these policies demands that an officer must be among the upper quartile of the graduating class in a lower career course before he can advance to the next higher career course. The completion of the latter course, in turn, becomes a prerequisite for designation and subsequent promotion in rank of the officer. Unfortunately, this applies only to career courses offered by allied countries and conducted abroad.
It is high time that the AFP consider the drafting of a policy on career courses offered locally that are taken by roughly 90 percent of the officers. This policy may require a higher level of academic standing, say upper 50 percent of the graduating class, before the officer can be recommended to take up the next higher career course.
This and a few other weeding out processes designed to retain only officers and enlisted personnel who have shown fitness to remain in the service will be concluded and detailed in the next issues. But lest I forget, it is Christmas Day.
Let us all be reminded that redemption came to Christendom when the Son of Man humbled himself to be Emmanuel and become our Savior. May the humility of the birth of Christ Jesus be our beacon. That it is not what material possessions we have or the gifts we give or receive that matter, but the joy we have in our hearts in our being together as a family, as an armed force, as a nation.
May our Christmas be merry and blessed.
https://www.manilatimes.net/2022/12/25/opinion/columns/reforms-needed-in-the-afp/1871626
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