AFP chief admits terrorism can’t be finished off during his term

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff General Ray Leonardo Guerrero admitted that his remaining term as the highest military official of the land is not enough to finish off terrorism in Mindanao.

Guerrero is supposed to retire on Sunday, December 17, 2017, when he reached the mandatory retirement age of 56. However, his term was extended by President Rodrigo Duterte for four more months or up to April 24, 2018 to give him enough time to oversee his plans and programs as chief of the 125,000-strong military.

“For me to say that we will be able to finish the terrorist problem within my term considering that I will be serving only up to April will be overly ambitious,” Guerrero told reporters.

“I’m just being practical. Like I said, the AFP operates based on a campaign plan. We’ve set targets and timelines and right now we have targets as far as the neutralization of terrorist threat is concerned.”

“I’ll do my best, to the most that I can give at the time that I am afforded as the chief of staff,” he added.

Guerrero, at the same time, allayed fears by some that the extension of martial law in Mindanao will lead to human rights violations by government troops.

“We have always been professional in our conduct. We have always exerted efforts to make sure that we are accountable and responsible for our actions and clearly our implementation of martial law from the time it was declared up to the time it was extended,” Guerrero said.