No ‘rift’ between Marines, Navy

If they separate (from the Navy), where will they go? It will also destroy the amphibious capability of the Navy because the purpose why the Marines was created is to act as the amphibious force of the Navy which is a very potent and lethal unit of the Ar

The reported rift between the Philippine Marines and its mother command, the Philippine Navy, is nothing more than a “difference in opinion.”

This was stressed by Vice Admiral Robert Empedrad, the Navy’s Flag Officer in Command, as he brushed off talks that Maj. Gen. Alvin Parreño’s decision to vacate his post as the Marines’ commandant five months ahead of the latter’s official retirement was due to their irreconcilable personal issues.

Parreño relinquished his post on Monday and was succeeded by Naval Inspector General Major Gen. Nathaniel Casem.

“Actually, it was just a difference in opinion. It had nothing to do with his decision to give way (to Casem),” Empedrad said in an interview ahead of the Marines’ change in command.

Empedrad and Parreño, both from both the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) “Sinagtala” Class of 1986, reportedly could not see eye-to-eye on a string of issues, one of them the proposal to make the Marines a standalone branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

He admitted that he and Parreño indeed had different views on the matter previously, but all that is now water under the bridge.

“What some of the senior (Marines) officers wanted, not all of them, is for them to be like the Air Force, Army. But the Chief of Staff and the higher leadership, like the SND (Secretary of National Defense), their decision and that of the Board of Generals, is they cannot be separated,” stated Empedrad.

“If they separate (from the Navy), where will they go? It will also destroy the amphibious capability of the Navy because the purpose why the Marines was created is to act as the amphibious force of the Navy which is a very potent and lethal unit of the Armed Foces. If you remove the Marines, we will no longer have our amphibious operations,” he added.

The best solution, according to the Navy chief, was to authorize the Marines to have control of its own budgetary requirement and spending “as approved” by President Rodrigo Duterte, who is also the military’s Commander-in-Chief.

“This is the first time this happened. It was never done before. So, this is a new set up. That was what was decided,” Empedrad said.