Why Duterte picked Año as DILG chief

Security analyst Chester Cabalza on Wednesday said that President Duterte’s appointment of military chief General Eduardo Año as Interior Secretary could likely be part of his desire to shift to federalism.

“The appointment of a former military official will strengthen his decision to push through with federalism. Mr. Duterte knows that the military can follow orders and they deliver results,” Cabalza told the Inquirer by phone.

But to have a Secretary of Interior and Local Government (SILG) whose background is the military is quite unusual, Cabalza conceded.

Cabalza noted that the President is “very unconventional.”

“That is part of his strategic ambiguity. He will confuse you until you find yourself subscribing to his decisions,” Cabalza said.

Cabalza also said Mr. Duterte’s appointment of former military chief Roy Cimatu and the impending appointment of Año would be “misconstrued as militarization in government,” even if the President’s basis is his “high trust in the military.”