EDITORIAL - Trouble in the AFP

Maybe his mouth needed washing with soap. But does using foul language in berating his men warrant the ouster of Rear Admiral Guillermo Wong as chief of the Philippine Navy? Wong, who formally relinquished his command last Friday, has denied reports that he uttered words that were too harsh for the ears of battle-hardened Marines. The former Navy chief had publicly questioned the purchase of Kevlar helmets and assault rifles for the Marines, and had accused Maj. Gen. Librado Ladia, Marine commandant, of corruption.

The harsh words reportedly prompted Marine officers to demand Wong’s relief, and the military leadership gave in, reassigning him to a post that he deemed as a demotion. Wong opted to be placed on floating status until his retirement in December. Reports yesterday said Wong was relieved of his command because the AFP brass feared mutinous Marines might stage a coup. Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes denied the reports, but there appears to be some truth to the story. And this is what’s troubling about Wong’s travails: An officer tried to clean up his organization and got booted out for it.

It’s not the first time that reports of anomalies in the procurement of supplies in the uniformed services have surfaced. Where there’s money involved, there are always opportunities for corruption. Reyes insists that Wong was done in by his leadership style, and that the AFP brass had to choose between the individual and the institution.

Perhaps Reyes is telling the truth and there’s no threat of a coup from the Marines. He may even downplay the way Wong was ousted by pressure from Marine subordinates. Maybe there are arcane forces at work in the military that civilians will find hard to understand. What civilians can easily understand, however, is that Wong raised questions about what he deemed as anomalous transactions. And he made his accusations in public, which indicated he felt strongly that he was telling the truth. Such accusations can’t be swept under the rug. Good governance is the battle cry of the new administration, and good governance extends to the Armed Forces. Wong’s allegations must be investigated thoroughly.