MANILA, Philippines – The Armed Forces chief on Friday said that the P11 billion budget that the President has earmarked for the military is still not enough to purchase all the necessary equipment for the capability upgrade plan but said that it could help the institution to start its transition for the modernization program.
In a chance interview after the RP-US Balikatan Exercise AFP chief General Eduardo Oban said that the AFP needs additional funding on top of the P11 billion earlier approved by President Benigno Aquino III.
“We need additional funds,” Oban told reporters. Nevertheless, he said that the military understands the financial constraints that the Aquino administration is facing and that they appreciate the government’s effort to support the AFP’s modernization program.
“We have total appreciation of [the fiscal situation],”Oban said. “Nakikita naman natin yung present government on yung efforts ng national leadership to put particular attention on military capability (We can see the efforts of the current national leadership to put particular attention on military capability,” he furthered.
Oban said that the promised budget has not yet been released to the AFP.
Oban added that based on the military’s modernization plan approved in 1995, the AFP needed P331 billion to upgrade its equipment and capabilities. The military chief furthered that the AFP needs to upgrade its naval and air assets.
Nevertheless, Oban said that the budget could help kickstart the military’s upgrade program adding that they will slowly transition from internal security to territorial defense, as per mandated by the Aquino administration.
“Base din dun yan sa plano natin na (This is also based on our plan that) somewhere during the six year period we’ll have to transition to territorial defense, slowly transitioning,” Oban told reporters.