Philippine Coast Guard expecting 30,000-strong workforce by yearend

MANILA Philippines —The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Monday said its workforce would hit the 30,000 mark before the end of 2023.

Commodore Jay Tarriela, deputy chief of the Coast Guard Staff for Human Resource Management, said the PCG is expected to have an additional 4,000 recruits before the end of the year, bringing the agency’s total workforce to 30,000 before the year ends.

“Inaasahang magkakaroon ng 4,000 recruits and Philippine Coast Guard bago matapos ang 2023,” the PCG said in a statement.

(The PCG is expecting an additional 4,000 recruits before the end of the year 2023.)

“Sa oras na maisakatuparan ito, aabot na sa 30,000 ang kabuuang bilang ng mga cost guardians na nagtataguyod ng kaligtasan at seguridad sa malawak na katubigan ng bansa,” it added.

(By the time this materializes, the total number of coast guard personnel ensuring the security of the country’s waters will reach 30,000.)

Tarriela also lauded President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Department of Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista for their initiatives and support for the PCG’s modernization and troop expansion.

Tarriela earlier raised the need for the PCG modernization law to allow the agency to program its acquisition of additional assets, stressing the importance of additional patrol vessels and aircraft.

Earlier this month, he called on lawmakers to support its modernization program, claiming that the current PCG’s assets will not suffice amid continuous Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea. (Vance Chan, Inquirer.net, trainee)

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