Speaker Martin G. Romualdez and four other House members on Monday filed a bill that seeks changes in the law providing for a fixed three-year tour of duty for the chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and several other high-ranking key officers.
House Bill (HB)6482 is titled, “An Act further strengthening professionalism and promoting the continuity of policies and modernization initiatives in the Armed Forces of the Philippines.”
The bill amends Republic Act (RA) 11709, signed on April 13 this year by then President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, which was enacted to put an end to the so-called “revolving door” policy in the appointment of the AFP chief.
Romualdez said there were some important issues raised by personnel of the military about the law.
“I understand them and they are all valid. I have discussed these with our House leaders and the committee on national defense and security and the bill is our way of addressing the concerns of our officers and enlisted personnel in the AFP,” Romualdez said.
The Speaker’s co-authors of the amendatory measure are Iloilo Rep. Raul Tupas, who chairs the defense committee; Negros Occidental Rep. Mercedes Alvarez, a vice chairperson of the committee; and Representatives Divina Grace Yu of Zamboanga del Sur, and Jorge Bustos of party-list group PATROL.
The proposed law would limit the fixed tour of duty of three consecutive years, unless sooner terminated by the President, to just four officers: chief of staff, commanding general of the Army, commanding general of the Air Force, and flag-officer-in-command of the Navy.
It would exclude from the coverage of such the three-year tenure the vice chief of staff, deputy chief of staff, unified command commanders, and inspector general. However, it would allow “lateral movement” for these officers.
The bill provides that except for the position of chief of staff, no officer shall be designated to key positions or promoted to the rank of brigadier general/commodore or higher if he has less than six months of active service remaining prior to compulsory retirement.
It also fixes the compulsory retirement age for certain high-ranking officers: 57 years for those with the rank of brigadier general/commodore, 58 for those with the rank of major general/rear admiral and 59 for those occupying the rank of lieutenant general/vice admiral.
The measure would allow the secretary of national defense, in consultation with the AFP, to determine the number of officers in each grade or rank, and in each major, technical or administrative service.
RA No. 11709 sets the percentage for the number of officers in each rank.
In their explanatory note, the five authors of the amendatory bill said the proposed changes in the law were the product of “extensive consultations” with members of the military.
“After the passage into law of RA No. 11709, a significant number of proposals and recommendations from officers and enlisted personnel were made to amend some provisions to make the law more responsive to the needs, peculiar situation, organizational structure, and human resource development of the AFP,” they said.
They said the legislation itself allows for its “systematic review, evaluation and impact assessment.”
They added that Congress is always cognizant of the constitutional role of the AFP as the “protector of the people and the state” and the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.