President Rodrigo Duterte has chosen Eastern Mindanao Command head Lt. Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr. as the new chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Madrigal will assume the position on Dec. 12 when outgoing AFP chief Gen. Carlito Galvez retires.
Galvez, on the other hand, will head the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, an official said Wednesday.
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said Duterte made the announcement during the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday night.
“The President announced his intention to appoint General Carlito Galvez Jr. to the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process,” Panelo said in a statement.
Galvez will replace former Presidential Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza, who resigned two weeks ago over the alleged corruption of his senior officials at the OPAPP.
Communist Party of the Philippines founding chairman Jose Maria Sison had previously speculated that Dureza’s resignation was aimed at covering up Duterte’s intention to militarize the OPAPP.
But Panelo was quick to dismiss Sison’s claim.
Last month, Galvez said he had personally told Dureza of his plan to become a peace consultant weeks before his retirement.
“I personally conveyed my request to OPAPP and I told Secretary Dureza, ‘Can I be some sort of consultant?’ He accepted my request,” Galvez said.