MANILA, Philippines--The general known as the ?emperor? Wednesday sought to dispel suspicion that the military under his watch would be used to sabotage the election results and ?destroy? national democracy.

Formally taking over as chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Lt. Gen. Delfin Bangit devoted much of his 20-minute speech to clear himself and explain his ?deep respect? for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

?I am not the kind of commander who will lead our soldiers astray. I will not allow anybody to use me for partisan politics,? he said during ceremonies at Camp Aguinaldo, the AFP's general headquarters in Quezon City.

?Sa Diyos lang ako magpapagamit (Only God can use me),? said Bangit, the commander of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) from February 2003 to September 2007 and Ms Arroyo?s senior aide-de-camp when she was still Vice President.

Defending his Commander in Chief, Bangit said he had ?so much respect? for Ms Arroyo because ?never have I received illegal orders from her.?

He quickly added: ?I?m sorry if that is not what you want to hear, but that is the truth.?

Addressing fears triggered by her appointment of her most trusted officer to the top post in the AFP, Ms Arroyo has promised that she would step down as scheduled in June and that her administration would see to a ?smooth transition? to the succeeding administration.

?General Bangit will always put the nation first in performing his duties to uphold the Constitution and protect our citizens,? the President said in a speech also at Wednesday?s ceremonial takeover of Bangit from the outgoing AFP chief, Gen. Victor Ibrado.

Ms Arroyo said her obligation as President was to maintain peace, order and stability, and that her appointment of Bangit would ?provide the continuity required to keep our nation stable and strong.?

She said that while leaders were ?transients,? the authority and responsibility ?endure as they are transferred to another leader.?

?So too is our entire administration devoted to ensure a smooth transition to a new government,? she said. ?The people come first.?

In his farewell speech, Ibrado reminded the soldiers to ?actively work? for credible elections and not get fixated on their being promoted to higher posts.

?It distracts us from our jobs ? Our interest is our people, and that is what we should think about day and night,? Ibrado said.

Unlikely scenario

Bangit said he was honored to lead the military. But he conceded that his appointment came at ?a very delicate time,? when the AFP was nearing its deadline to crush the communist insurgency and the nation was preparing for its first automated elections.

The May elections are so ?critical,? he said, ?that all possible scenarios, even the most unlikely scenario that I am here to destroy democracy, have been brought to the fore.?

He lamented that critics viewed his appointment as the ?prize of loyalty? to Ms Arroyo, and tried to banish perception that his military career took a fine turn when he became PSG commander.

?What happened to my years of work and sacrifice?? he said. ?I have done my duty well. But ever since I left PSG, every time I got promoted, people think that I was there either because I kowtowed or I will be used for something illegal.?

Struggle and sacrifice

Bangit said his military career began in the ?struggle and sacrifice? he endured in the separation from his family as a young lieutenant and, later, in the battlefields.

?I rose from the ranks just by doing my best every single day ? despite the sight of death among my comrades, the imperfections of our organization and the absence of appreciation from my countrymen,? he said.

Bangit was appointed Army chief in May 2009, when Ibrado was named AFP chief of staff.

Before then, he headed the Southern Luzon Command, the Intelligence Service of the AFP and the Army?s 2nd Infantry Division, among others.

Bangit acknowledged that it was reasonable for the nation to exercise ?extreme cautiousness? during an election season, particularly with the image of the AFP tainted by ?some unfortunate twists in history.?

2004 presidential poll

It was an apparent reference to allegations that some ranking officers were involved in the purported fraud that attended the victory of Ms Arroyo over her then rival, actor Fernando Poe Jr., during the 2004 presidential election.

But Bangit asked that the AFP be spared from politics, saying it had moved on and improved itself over the years.

?Amidst all the fears, controversies and issues, I want to assure each and every Filipino that I am for the healthy exercise of democracy,? he said, adding:

?I will do everything in my power to fight the enemies of democracy ? We will always be on the side of what is good and what is right.?

Passing progress on

With less than four months to go before her term ends in June, Ms Arroyo said she would ?in the meantime? focus on governance.

She stressed the importance of passing on her administration?s accomplishments and progress ?to the new leaders, to continue the march forward.?

?The global recession prevented the economic growth from really reaching the poor ... as we hoped and planned. Yet the progress we made can be passed on for the next administration to build on,? she said.

Ms Arroyo said she would leave the nation ?in a better shape than we found it.? For example, she said, the country was ?safer? because of ?the great performance of the AFP.?

?We are optimistic and hopeful about the future of this nation,? she said, reiterating her deep commitment to ?a smooth transition to a new government.?

?As we have heard from [Ibrado and Bangit], we can count on the Armed Forces to help us prove that our democracy works for the future of our nation?s children,? she added.

Co-terminus with Arroyo

But Liberal Party senatorial candidate Rufino Biazon pointed out that Bangit?s term should end when his commander in chief?s term ends on June 30.

?He should condition himself that he will only serve for the remainder of the term of the one who appointed him,? Biazon said. ?After all, the next President will have the authority and prerogative to replace him.?

Biazon said the sooner Bangit declared that he would step down together with Ms Arroyo, the sooner he would gain the public trust.

?He should consider the conduct of clean, orderly and peaceful elections and a smooth transition of power as the ultimate accomplishment in his entire career as a military officer. He would be redeemed from the ?Hello Garci? [election fraud] issue and suspicions of being an administration puppet,? Biazon said.

Renato Reyes Jr., the secretary general of the militant Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), expressed a similar skepticism.

?No matter how professional Bangit may claim he is, his association with [Ms Arroyo] diminishes those claims. Some may say that it is unfair, but how can you not be ? worried?? Reyes said in a text message to the Inquirer.

Fixated

But Malacañang does not share the fears raised by certain quarters concerning Bangit?s appointment, Ms Arroyo?s spokesperson Ricardo Saludo said in a press briefing.

Saludo said many people were looking forward to the May elections and a peaceful transition of government.

?Unfortunately, perhaps you can never dispel what is on the minds of some of them because they seem to be fixated on a certain perspective,? he said.

Commenting on Bangit?s speech, Saludo said he hoped that critics would stop dragging the military into politics.

He reminded politicians that the military was serving the country faithfully and was hurt by insinuations that it was not doing its job.

?Let?s not make their jobs hard by making statements that are not right and only serve to destroy the image of soldiers,? he said. With reports from Gil C. Cabacungan Jr. and Nikko Dizon