PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. has designated three senior officials to key positions in the Armed Forces, including Navy chief, who will serve for three years by virtue of a law that took effect last July 1.
The new Navy chief, Rear Adm. Toribio Adaci Jr., assumed command yesterday during rites presided over by AFP chief Lt. Gen. Bartolome Bacarro at the Navy headquarters in Manila.
In his address, Adaci vowed to protect the country’s sovereignty and territory in keeping with the President’s earlier pronouncement that his administration will not surrender any square inch of the country’s territory to any foreign power.
Maj. Gen. Arthur Cordura was designated as the AFP vice chief. He took on his new post last Wednesday during rites also presided by Bacarro at the AFP general headquarters at Camp Aguinaldo.
Maj. Gen. Efren Baluyot was named the AFP Southern Luzon Command (Solcom) chief but he has yet to assume command, according to AFP public affairs chief Col. Jorry Baclor.
Adaci, who previously commanded the Naval Forces Western Mindanao, succeeded Navy Vice Commander Rear Adm. Caesar Bernard Valencia, who took over as concurrent acting Navy chief in September following the retirement of then Navy chief Vice Adm. Adeluis Bordado.
Cordura replaced AFP deputy chief of staff Vice Adm. Rommel Anthony Reyes who was designated acting AFP vice chief, in concurrent capacity, last September when then AFP vice chief Lt. Gen. Erickson Gloria retired.
Baluyot will take the helm of Solcom from its deputy commander, Brig. Gen. Armand Arevalo.
Arevalo was named the concurrent acting Solcom commander last August following the designation of Bacarro, the then Solcom commander, as AFP chief.
Cordura was previously the Air Force vice commander before taking over as AFP vice chief while Baluyot is currently the commander of the Army’s Armor Division.
Adaci and Baluyot are both members of the Philippine Military Academy class of 1989 while Cordura is from the PMA class 1990.
The designations were recommended by the AFP Board of Generals chaired by the AFP chief. It was subsequently approved by President Marcos Jr., the AFP’s commander-in-chief.
Republic Act 11709 gave a three-year term to key AFP officials, including the Navy chief, AFP vice chief and Solcom commander. It was signed in April by former President Duterte and took effect last July 1.
It also provided a three-year term to the AFP chief, AFP deputy chief, Army chief, Air Force chief, AFP inspector general, and the commanders of the Northern Luzon, Western, Central, Eastern Mindanao, and Western Mindanao commands.
The law gave the superintendent of the PMA a four-year term.
Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) and Central Command (Centcom) are currently headed in an acting capacity by Brig. Gen. Arturo Rojas and Maj. Gen. Benedict Arevalo, respectively.
Rojas, the Westmincom deputy commander, took over as the concurrent acting Westmincom commander in October when then Westmincom commander Lt. Gen. Alfredo Rosario retired.
Arevalo, the current chief of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division, assumed command as the concurrent acting Centcom commander last week following the retirement of then Centcom commander Lt. Gen. Robert Dauz.
Baclor said there were no officers designated so far as permanent commanders of Westmincom and Centcom.
“As your Navy, we are directly involved in preserving and protecting our country’s maritime interest. We will adhere to and stand with the position of our commander-in-chief regarding our rights in the West Philippine Sea and seas all over our archipelago. We will protect our sovereignty and territorial integrity at all times,” said Adaci in his speech.
The Philippines, China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei and Taiwan all have claims on the West Philippine Sea. China has been aggressive in pushing for its claim over the past years and even built artificial islands in its occupied reefs.
Adaci also vowed that the Navy, during his term, will sustain the implementation of its modernization program and will enhance the competence of personnel through training.
“We will build on the gains of previous leadership. It is our priority to continue sustaining our modernization program, the acquisition of hardware and strengthening the fields of specialization of our personnel, among others,” said Adaci.
Bacarro described Adaci as a flag officer of “competence, character and integrity” and expressed confidence that Adaci’s “stellar record and distinguished experience in naval operations, education and training, and personnel management and administration” will be beneficial to the Navy and to the Armed Forces in general.
He said Adaci’s intellectual, operational, diplomatic and strategic competencies and “exceptional grasp” of the Navy’s operational environment “will hopefully play a key in achieving a credible defense posture for our country.”
“The regional and global security are also volatile in these challenging times. Tension can arise, especially as far as the situation in the West Philippine Sea is concerned,” said Bacarro.
“And on this, your experience in international defense and security engagement can be our asset. It can be our asset as we continue to build goodwill and strengthen existing ties with partner-nations in Asean and wider Indo-Pacific and globally as well,” added Bacarro.
Bacarro said Cordura’s “years of experience in the noble profession of arms, most notably as Vice Commander of the Philippine Air Force, has more than prepared you for this position.
“I am fully confident that you will continue to display passionate leadership in this position that entails a greater magnitude of responsibility,” said Bacarro.
