Malacanang has been raising the possibility that Gen. Esperon's term as AFP Chief could be extended.

Sen. Lacson is opposing Gen. Esperon's extension alleging that it would cause "demoralization in the AFP".

Do PDFFers agree or disagree to extending Gen. Esperon's term?

No.

there are other generals who are as capable as gen. esperon, besides, he is too tainted with the stigma of the hello garci scandal.

the president should this time choose a cs unmarked by the hello garci and other scandals

yes!yes!yes!-the president has the right to extend the term of the chief of staff as long as she wishes.

your opinion will not matter.

wait until you become president!

In this thread, we are not discussing about the powers of the president to extend the services of retiring AFP Generals.

This thread is all about a poll for posters to vote "yes or no" for the extension of Gen. Esperon as AFP Chief under the present regime.

Although almost everybody inside or outside PDFF voted against Esperon's extension, it should be a "no surprise" if his services will be extended by Mrs. Arroyo by virtue of the latter's executive powers because he (Esperon) was a part and parcel of Arroyo's hold on to to power in a highly questionable mandate along with the most controversial election fraudster former Comelec Chief Virgilio Garcillano who was in tandem with Gen. Esperon in rigging the election results.

Esperon's heavy handed leadership is well documented. The sooner he leaves, the better.

Sir Duminus and other PDFF Moderators and Knowledgeable Forumers,

Just out of curiosity, how come the AFP changes its Chief of Staff so frequently. I know that it would be beneficial so that corruption might be prevented but also we put into account projects started by these leaders like SRDP and then when a new Cheif of Staff is promoted he may continue ot discontinue such programs. Would it be advantageous to have them stay in office for at least 4 years?

Your thoughts sirs?

Shiz No, Esperon was known for killimh civilians and he's TOO tainted with the Garci crap.

If Esperon's term should not be extended. who will be the most likely to be next in line?

The law says three years. The revolving door policy is a way to reward loyal generals with extensive but legal benefits arising from the position, since their retirement benefits will be computed based on one rank higher than the last rank attained.

You know what?

It doesnt matter if you replace Esperon or not anyway.

Why?

The president's choice will carry the same shroud of influence and "burden" no matter who takes charge.

The problem is, when the new CSAFP comes in, the projects that are already in the pipeline may be ruined.

THAT'S MY DEEPEST CONCERN.

If the new CSAFP is very supportive of the SRDP and the modernization, then we have a better choice.

If not,.... what's the need for a new CSAFP when doing so may disrupt the ongoing projects?

Remember, Esperon or not, ........ when the top "gang" says DO THIS,... the CSAFP has no choice but to follow .... unless he decides to resign instead just to save his soul.

So for me, if the there's no better alternative than Esperon, then why bother?

3 years is too short for me, in fact. If he's doing great, why not just simply become co-terminus with the president?

Bottomline is .. IF HE'S INTELLIGENT ABOUT MODERNIZATION AND SRDP OR AT LEAST IN ENDING THE WARS .. then Gen. Esperon should bow out.

So, all the aspiring generals in line should consider that.

While it is true that the president's prerogative reduces the CS to a political consideration, an extension of term also hijacks the promotions of lower level officers. So although it doesnt matter who actually sits as CSAFP, it still matters when you consider upward mobility of deserving officers.

I agree that a set of concerns should be considered when deciding if the CS' term should be extended or a new CS is sworn in instead.

So, it's better to weigh all things first to find out which is the better option.

BTW, if you will just simply replace the CS with another just because of the belief that we should change the leadership as often as possible to appease the pool of generals, THEN IT IS WRONG.

The generals should be serving for the good of the military .. and NOT FOR THEIR OWN SELFISH REASONS.

They should be serving the military. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.

Nonetheless, if the aspirant has proven himself KNOWLEGEABLE ENOUGH on the needs of the military (like SRDP and MODERNIZATION) and has shown determination in pursuing it, then he is qualified enough to sit as the new chief.

Else, he should better retire... so the ongoing projects and plans will not be ruined.

That should be the goal.

PERFORMANCE and CAPABILITY over SENIORITY.

ACCOMPLISHMENT OF PROJECTS over MAKING EVERY GENERAL THE CSAFP.

This should serve as motivation to all aspiring CSAFP so that the military can finally have a leader really WORTHY OF THE POST.

no extension please

mam glo, you can just appoint him one of the USECs at DPWH or any other government agency with high corruption rates - he will take to it like turtle to water

what could he really do in three months?

This is the question that the straight answer could rubbish out the reason for his extension. Unless he (Esperon) is a Superman that he can stop the insurgency in three months time before he leaves.

In a rational point of view, he was extended for three months to clear up the dirty tracks of his involvement in rigging the election that allowed Mrs. Arroyo to cling to power by fraudulent mandate and also to allow Esperon to fill up his knapsack to top up his ill-gotten wealth while in office.

How is Gen Esperon tied to the Arroyo family. During this expose I would think they would all start to close the loop and get in the huddle cause now it looks like the people are tired of all this drama and the more press releases on the proported scandal and the longer it drags on....the more concerned the nation will be thus drawing the church involvement as well as the local and national personalities to the scene. It just may be that the next few months will be crucial and Gen Esperon could hold the ranks from splitting.
On another note look at Gen Reyes and look at his present position. Loyalty has it's rewards but what about the millions of poor who continue to etch out a meager living and their worry about their retirement...hence the proliferation of illegal activities everywhere just to put bread on the table. Are the police blind? Just go and spend a few days in Baclaran and along Roxas Blvd and see all the illegal activities to include the motorcycle cop that is making a killing there. There you will see a Church filled with visitors and a few feet away all the illegal vendors selling their pirated wares in full view of everyone to include tourists and OFWs.

It's really easy for a lot of people to slander (court judgment has not yet been rendered) or condemn the incumbent leaders of government under the veil of freedom of speech. There is nothing wroong with it although my sympathies lie with some people who should yet be presumed innocent until proven guilty. But the most disgusting part is the CPP-NPAs taking advantage of freedoms of speech and the press which they will utterly deny us when they take over. Or the writ of amparo or the privelege of the writ of habeas corpus. Kung wala akong takot sa Diyos dinemanda ko na si MSantor for 'cough, cough, cough'

Things are just too quiet for anything to happen in the next few days. Maybe the people are tired of Edsas and maybe there is no real person willing to come out and to challenge and lead a new government and most people when asked will probably say that GMA is Good only her surroundings are questionable. The VP? Well he is also quiet... did someone get to him already or he is just staying on the sidelines with a wait and see......Each and everytime there is a change, the economy is affected so who knows maybe they are willing to see it through with the thought that its better to have the lesser of two evils mentality. It seems that every two or three months there are allegations of corruption and bribery yet the leadership is able to survive. That in itself is an amazing feat. I think everyone is so preoccupied with trying to make a living nowadays then on whats going on in the political scene.

Correct, every two or three months there are allegations of corruption. Why ? because it is happening. The regime still survived. Why ? Because they use the AFP and PNP to clamp down dissenters and bribe all the way with poor "Juan de la Cruz's money, to silence the governors and congressmen who might be thinking of itching her out and support impeachment.

As we can see it is neither the opposition nor any dissenters that laid down the expose and blew the whistle to expose the enormous scandal of corruption. It's their own lieutenants. Why ? because the crocodiles like Benjamin Abalos and Mike Arroyo have already in mind on how much they would get as kickback of the ZTE deal, and because of intense pressure and the enormity of the kickback amount envisaged by the crocodiles, Neri got rattled and spilled it out during the house inquiry in conjunction with Joey De Venecia's testimonies on the involvement of Mike Arroyo.

Not only that the Filipino people are fooled, they are also bullied not to talk about the scandal that opened a can of worms. Well, I must admit that nobody could stop them but at least there is a real painted picture of what and who they are running the government. A government of crocodiles.

Sir Former TOPP; I could not resist venting this out in reference to a portion of your post which brings back memories.

What is this all about? Look at this headlines in the Visayan Daily Star... RPA filing complaint vs. Army,
cite Calatrava raid, evacuation. The Revolutionary Proletarian Army-Alex Bongcayao Brigade is filing a complaint against Army Scout Rangers for a raid on its troops that it said is in violation on an existing peace agreement, and triggered the evacuation of 124 families from Sitio Harvy, Barangay Minapasok, Calatrava, RPA-ABB spokesman Victorino Sumulong said yesterday

Well the government is deciding whom to support when in fact the ABB was responsible for killing US Special Forces COL Nick Rowe and still have not been punished yet the governement can overlook things like that and look at this quote.....

Another quote "The Army is not pursuing RPA-ABB members, we are pursuing members of the New People’s Army, de los Reyes said".

Its just like that....Earlier the mutineers did pushups and the govt called it even....

Desertranger, if a government is in the wrong and untidy direction, it is not a surprise for it's Armed Forces to be confused because they have to associate their moves in tandeem with a bad governance. There is no more distinction between right and wrong if you are riding along with the tides.

My only hope is for our AFP to be independent in the same fashion to that of the US, Britain and other decent countries whose leaders don't capitalize the armed forces to protect their corrupt leadership or regime.