3 generals in short-list for next Army chief

MANILA, Philippines - Three senior military officers are in the shortlist of candidates for the next commander of the 80,000-strong Army.

The three are Northern Luzon Command chief Lt. Gen. Gregorio Catapang, Central Command chief Maj. Gen. John Bonafos, and 7th Infantry Division chief Maj. Gen. Hernando Iriberri, according to Armed Forces public affairs chief Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala.

Zagala said all three are qualified to succeed Army chief Lt. Gen. Noel Coballes, who will retire from the service tomorrow.

“I have worked under all three of them and they are all professionals, competent and capable for the task,” he said.

President Aquino, the Armed Forces commander-in-chief, will lead the change-of-command ceremony at the Army headquarters at Fort Bonifacio.

The Board of Generals (BOG) had submitted the list of candidates to Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, who then forwarded it to Aquino.

The BOG consists of the Armed Forces chief of staff, vice chief of staff, deputy chief of staff, and the commanders of the Army, Air Force and Navy.

Zagala said though the President can choose an officer who is not in the shortlist.

“There will always be a possibility that the President will choose outside the recommended (officers). Based on the Constitution, the President can choose from the rank of lieutenant colonel and above,” he said.

Zagala said the next Army chief would play a crucial role as the military is seeking to shift its focus from internal security to territorial defense.