Defense chief Cruz visits Zamboanga for PDR info drive text & photos HADER GLANG

Defense chief Avelino Cruz Jr. (2nd from left) proceeds to a press conference with Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Gabriel Habacon (right) and Defense Usec. Ernesto Carolina (2nd from right) at the military's Southcom headquarters in Upper Calarian, Zamboanga City.

Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr. on Friday visited Zamboanga City and met with top brass of the Armed Forces’ Southern Command, the military’s largest unified area command, to pursue and promote the Philippine Defense Reform (PDR).

“My visit here is in connection with the implementation of Philippine Defense Reform,” Cruz told local reporters in a press conference. “PDR has key areas, which we are executing to further boost the capability of the AFP.”

Cruz’s visit had to do, as well with carrying out the Capability Upgrade Plan, which focuses on acquiring basic individual and unit equipment that are needed in the AFP’s internal security operations to enhance mobility, firepower, communications, force protection and combat life-support.

During the meeting, Cruz said that Southcom chief Maj. Gen. Gabriel Habacon and other military commanders in Mindanao came up with a consensus making Sulu as the center of attention in the convergence efforts of socio-economic building, basic infrastructure, education and strong capable military.

“If we join all this it can produce an atmosphere conducive to growth,” he said. “We have to concentrate in Sulu so that we can replicate the success in Basilan, but we don’t need additional US personnel…what we need is additional US resources for roads, schools and medical facilities.”

A thorough assessment of the defense and military establishment that lasted for three years was completed in 2003. This assessment resulted in the formulation of the PDR program, which provides the framework for introducing comprehensive, systematic and institutional improvements in the defense and military establishment.

“PDR serves as the overall framework for the transformation process that will re-engineer the Philippines military system and re-tool its personnel,” Cruz said. “Re-engineering our systems means introducing improvements in planning, programming, budgeting, logistics, procurement, management and finance, among other critical function areas.”

“Re-tooling our personnel means professionalizing our workforce by establishing effective staff development programs and introducing updated personnel management systems, as well as increasing our training capacity in order to improve our core competence.”

The improvements being introduced through the PDR are based on templates for defense reform that have been tried and tested in several countries that have undergone defense transformation. Once adapted to local conditions, these templates are envisioned to transform the defense and military establishment into more effective institutions in confronting current and emerging security threats.

In commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the AFP, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) was directed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to release P5 billion to sustain the momentum gained in the transformation efforts through the PDR.

“Hopefully as the country’s economy improves this can allow us to provide better benefits and services as well as construct 3,000 units a year of off-base and on-base housings to active officers and enlisted personnel in the camps,” Cruz said.

The PDR has 10 component thrusts: 1. Implementation of a strategy-driven, Multi-Year Defense Planning Systems (MYDPS); 2. Improvement of operational and training capacity; 3. Improvement of logistics capacity; 4. Improving operational level expertise by addressing organizational, management and operational systemic deficiences (staff development); 5. Improvement of personnel management systems; 6. Planning, programming and execution of a multi-year capability upgrade for the AFP; 7. Optimizing the defense budget and improving management controls; 8. Creating a professional acquisition workforce and establishing a centrally managed defense acquisition system; 9. Increasing capability of the AFP to conduct civil military operations; 10. Information management development program. (ZS)