Senga: Keep AFP out of politics

The military has no intention to cross over the great divide and meddle in political issues, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Lt. Gen. Generoso Senga asserted yesterday.

Senga reiterated the call, in particular to former President Corazon Aquino and former defense secretary and AFP chief Renato de Villa, who separately claimed having "friends" in the military that could help them out in their cause to unseat President Arroyo.

"Former President Cory said she has friends in the military and (just like) former (AFP) chief of staff De Villa. This tends to confuse the mind (of the soldiers)," Senga said.

He called on the servicemen to focus on their constitutional mandate of protecting the people against terrorism, insurgency and other national security threats.

Mrs. Aquino had vowed to lead mass actions to pressure Mrs. Arroyo to step down following the opposition’s failure to impeach her in the House of Representatives.

De Villa, for his part, led a group advocating for regime change and the installation of a council of elders.

Both have called for the military to support their cause of ousting Mrs. Arroyo.

The military leadership, however, maintained they will stay neutral on political issues.

The Church, through the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, did not back opposition calls for Mrs. Arroyo’s resignation.

The support of the military and the Catholic Church in the two EDSA people power uprisings had led to the ouster of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos in February 1986 and former President Joseph Estrada in January 2001.

A number of lawmakers have also conceded that popular revolts without military support will not succeed.

Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, one of the key players in the first EDSA revolt, pointed out that no amount of rallies and demonstrations can force Mrs. Arroyo to resign unless the military comes in with the support of the Church.

The opposition have vowed to take their cause to the streets to spark another people power revolt but so far, the numbers are dwindling.

But other lawmakers warned the military might just step in and take the initiative for a regime change.

Sen. Rodolfo Biazon earlier warned the government that it should not ignore reports that some quarters of the military have expressed dismay over the dismissal of the impeachment complaint against Mrs. Arroyo at the House of Representatives.

Biazon claimed some disgruntled members of the military have intimated to him their disgust over the killing of the impeachment complaint by majority lawmakers.

Sen. Ramon Magsaysay also said the dismissal of the impeachment complaint could trigger the military to step in.

Magsaysay warned the dismissal of the complaint had a direct effect on members of the uniformed services who have closely monitored the impeachment proceedings.

Senga, on the other hand, appealed to "interest groups" to put an end to the controversy surrounding the appointment of Lt. Gen. Edilberto Adan as officer-in-charge of the AFP’s Southern Command.

Senga pointed out the officers and the servicemen had respected and supported the decision of their commander in chief to appoint Adan in the sensitive post.