EDITORIAL - Not just empty talk

Reactions were mixed to the report that the Armed Forces of the Philippines is considering the training and deployment of militias as augmentation forces in West Philippine Sea patrols. AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the militias could be drawn from the ranks of military reservists and even from fishermen. A major labor group supported the proposal; fisherfolk on Pagasa Island in the WPS, on the other hand, opposed the idea.

One thing is clear: any such deployment will require additional funding and resources, beginning with the boats to be used. The Philippine Navy under the AFP and the Philippine Coast Guard, which is an attached civilian agency of the Department of Transportation, are both so lacking in vessels that private boats are hired to carry out certain operations, including resupply missions to the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal.

Conscription is unlikely for AFP reservists, a number of whom are politicians currently occupying government posts. The likely approach is that the AFP will invite volunteers among the reservists who are interested in rendering maritime militia services even if only for a limited period. They will need special training and facilities, all of which will also require funding.

The Philippine Coast Guard in particular can use a significant boost in its annual appropriation. During PCG encounters with its Chinese counterpart, the scene always looks like David confronting Goliath. The China Coast Guard can draw on the enormous resources of that country’s military, having been placed since 2018 under the command of the Central Military Commission chaired by President Xi Jinping himself. There are no indications that the Philippine government intends to do the same and transform the PCG from a civilian agency into a military arm.

With the Philippines hamstrung by fiscal limitations, two minority senators have proposed that a portion of the ever-growing annual appropriation for confidential and intelligence funds be allotted instead for boosting PCG capability. With the controversies that have hounded the CIF allocations, the proposal merits consideration. Like the military, the PCG needs to develop credible capability to carry out its mandate, which includes not only sea patrols and law enforcement but also boat safety inspections prior to sailing.

There has been a lot of talk especially among public officials about the need to upgrade military and PCG capabilities to protect the country’s sovereignty and maritime economic entitlements, as officially declared in 2016 by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. Such talk cannot be empty; it must be matched by the provision of the needed funds and other resources.