Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 10) — Former Department of National Defense (DND) officer-in-charge Jose Faustino Jr. said he resigned after he was left unaware that Gen. Andres Centino already took his oath of office as returning chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
Faustino issued the explanation on Tuesday, a day after Malacañang announced his resignation.
“With the utmost respect, I submitted my irrevocable letter of resignation to the president, His Excellency Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., on Friday, January 6, 2023, after learning only from news and social media reports that an oath of office of the new Chief of Staff, AFP had taken place at Malacañang,” he said.
Faustino — who himself served as AFP chief of staff during the Duterte administration — did not attend the change of command ceremony on Saturday, where Centino formally succeeded Lt. Gen. Bartolome Bacarro as the military’s top official.
His resignation also came amid rumors of a supposed destabilization plot in the AFP, something both the military and the police denied.
In the rest of his statement, Faustino did not elaborate on the appointment of Centino, who is back to lead the AFP after five months. Instead, he wrote in length about his respect for the AFP — which he described as a “highly disciplined and competent organization that will survive under any given circumstance.”
“Thus, fully cognizant of the selfless sacrifice and courage of our troops and civilian human resources, I cannot allow the AFP’s reputation to be tarnished, maligned, or politicized. I assure everyone that I will always hold the AFP in high esteem, which its men and women have painstakingly earned,” Faustino said.
The Palace announced that Marcos appointed presidential adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. as defense secretary after Faustino vacated his post.
Courtesy resignations
After the change in the DND leadership, department spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said coterminous appointees have begun tendering their courtesy resignations, which he clarified is normal procedure.
“Pag may dadating na bagong liderato, that is automatic na yung coterminous appointees, magbibigay talaga ng courtesy resignations kasi nandoon sa kanilang appointment orders yung coterminous appointment,” Andolong said.
[Translation: When a new leader arrives, it is automatic for coterminous appointees to submit their courtesy resignation because the coterminous appointment is stated in their appointment orders.]
“It will be up to the incoming leadership kung ano ang disposisyon doon [what his disposition on that is]. But that is done usually to give the incoming principal a free hand in creating and appointing his staff,” he added.
Despite the sudden developments, Andolong said department operations are not affected. He added that while some are saddened by Faustino’s exit, “the morale is alright” and they’re “looking forward” to Galvez’s leadership.
He reiterated that there is no destabilization attempt in the military, calling the rumors an exaggeration.
“The AFP is a truly professional organization,” he said. “I don’t think the officers and men of the AFP will resort to destabilization because their preferred leadership was not…or their preferred leadership was changed or anything like that. Hindi na sila gano’n [They’re not like that anymore]. We’ve moved on from that already.”
Malacañang, for its part, also stressed that Marcos has the “sole prerogative” to choose the chief of the Armed Forces.
It also noted that Faustino “knew of the developments” with regards to Centino’s appointment.
