Why the position of AFP chief of staff is like a revolving door
The strongest organization in any Third World country is its military organization. It is from this organization where the head of state, elected or otherwise, obtains his capacity to protect his office, as his office is always subjected to challenges.
In the Philippines, past or present, we are all aware of this truism. It is therefore the policy of the head of state to appoint a completely trusted and loyal officer of his military in the person of the chief of staff (CoS) to command the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and through him, he has control of the entire military.
In our structure, the CoS is a very powerful man, and checks and balances hardly exist. He commands the entire AFP with loyal subordinates, from top to bottom, who are also graduates of the same school where he came from. Coming from the same school provides the culture that makes his subordinates loyal to him (right or wrong) in spite of the military structure and laws against it. It is no wonder then that the head of state would rather have a CoS who gets rotated frequently, to get the loyalty of the man who wields such vast power on the entire AFP.
But if the CoS performs only his functions as described by his title, his power of command is taken away. It reverts to the commander in chief (CinC) who can delegate such functions of command to the major service commands, separate or area commands like Cemcom, Nolcom, etc. With that kind of structure, the CoS position will become less significant, other than providing advice to the CinC and more rigorous planning for the AFP. At this point, the head of state will feel at ease with the safety and security of his office. That would be reason enough for the CoS to have a term of office.
I will not suggest that the position of CoS be abolished or the appointee be replaced by the secretary of national defense (SND) in an acting capacity. The CoS is a soldier position, but the SND may be a civilian as it should be.
It is suggested, though, that professionalism in the officer corps of the AFP should be raised. Today, the AFP is a military dynasty controlled by PMA graduates. If one checks the roster of the major positions in the AFP, he will find that what I said is true.
Years back, there was a bill filed by several senators to create academies for the Air Force and the Navy, but that bill never came to pass. The main points of that bill were twofold: to provide checks and balances in the AFP, and to provide training to sons and daughters of poor families. Had these schools been created, I am sure we could have produced well-schooled officers for the two technical services of the AFP and, further, contributed highly trained personnel for the management of the aviation and maritime industries.
It is never too late to create these schools now, as a law has been enacted for the government to provide free college education while there is also a need for highly educated officers to man the very expensive naval ships and fighter jets.
Lt. Gen. Antonio E Sotelo
AFP (retired)
Alabang Hills Village, Muntinlupa City
