Floating status for Navy officer

MANILA, Philippines – The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) did not use the word, but “floating” seems to be an accurate description of the new service status of Rear Adm. Feliciano Angue.

The Navy announced yesterday that Angue’s appointment as Naval Forces Western Mindanao chief has been deferred pending the investigation on his alleged violation of the Armed Forces code of ethics.

“We will hold in abeyance his appointment as Naval Forces Western Mindanao commander because of the directive to conduct investigations,” acting Navy chief Rear Adm. Danilo Cortez said in a press briefing yesterday in Camp Aguinaldo.

Cortez said such setup would ensure that Angue would be available to face the panel tasked to conduct the investigations.

“For now we will place him (Angue) on the receiving station of the Navy (headquarters). We cannot allow him to assume his post for now. The command is in Mindanao while the committee that will investigate him is in Manila,” he said.

Cortez said Marine Brig. Gen. Eugenio Clemen, chief of the First Marine Brigade, will serve as acting commander of the Western Mindanao Naval Forces.

Asked if Angue would still assume his new post, Cortez said it would depend on the outcome of the investigations.

He said they cannot give a timetable on the investigations as they are still gathering evidences.

“We cannot give a timeframe for now. We are following the process and we are collating statements,” the Navy chief said.

AFP chief Lt. Gen. Ricardo David, Jr. said Angue will not be given any task pending the investigation.

“He has no assignment,” David said in the press briefing, which marked the first time he spoke about the issue.

Cortez, however, clarified that Angue was not placed on floating status, but he explained that an officer on floating status has no designation.

“The assumption of Rear Adm. Angue was only held in abeyance,” the Navy chief said.

The Naval Forces Western Mindanao commander is a two-star post, lower than Angue’s previous assignment as National Capital Region Command chief, which is a three star post.

Angue, a graduate of Philippine Military Academy class ‘78, said he was demoted but the AFP leadership claimed his new post is commensurate with his rank as a two-star general.

Angue’s reassignment came after his revelation that some military officers sided with politicians during the 2010 polls to get key posts.

He has also accused Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin of meddling with the AFP promotion system. 

Military and defense officials have denied the allegations.

Angue continued to hold press briefings even after David issued a written order barring him from delivering statements to the media.

The AFP had previously said that Angue may have violated Article 5 Section 4.3.12 of the military code of ethics which bars soldiers from seeking redress of grievances through the media.

David also challenged Angue to name the officers who engaged in politicking during the last elections.

“If there are officers or even enlisted personnel who campaigned for candidates, they should be investigated. Rear Adm. Angue should provide names. We are not allowed to engage in partisan politics,” David said.

The AFP chief also refuted Angue’s claims that President Aquino was ill advised when he made the military designations.

“I think the President will not sign anything without examining it. He will consult a lot of people before doing that,” David said.

He said they are prepared to face the Senate or any independent group that will look into the AFP promotion system.

“We are not hiding anything. All the things we do here can be scrutinized,” he said.

Palace: Hands off on Angue case

Meanwhile, Malacañang said it would not impose any gag order on its officials invited to congressional hearings but would want military officers to respect their own institution’s processes and go to their grievance committees.

Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Secretary Ricky Carandang stressed that the new government would not have a directive similar to Executive Order 464, which required former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s officials to seek her consent before attending legislative inquiries.

“President Aquino has always stood for transparency and I don’t think that we’ll be hiding behind any executive orders if we are called to hearings and we will do our best to comply and answer the questions,” Carandang said, explaining Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares’ no-show at a Senate hearing on the value added tax on toll.

EO 464 had been revoked during the time of Arroyo after much pressure from various sectors.

But he said that the case of Angue was different because he could have aired his complaints before a grievance committee rather than gripe publicly.

“The Palace supports the efforts of the Armed Forces to investigate all those - again the issue of Admiral Angue is being handled by the Armed forces. It has its processes. It has its rules. I think the President has already said that when he spoke to you directly, he is the commander-in-chief and he expects his orders to be followed,” Carandang said.

“Admiral Angue’s statement to the media has been very disturbing. There’s a grievance mechanism and it’s not necessary to air it in front of the public because it does tend to create concerns about demoralization. So, the Armed Forces is looking into this and they are looking into the actions of Admiral Angue right now,” he said.

Carandang said the military must be treated as a different case because “there’s a military discipline”

“It would be up to the Armed Forces to determine that matter. But as far as civilians are concerned, there is no EO 464 anymore. And again, Cabinet members are encouraged to attend Senate hearings,” he said. – Aurea Calica