MANILA – Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Efren Abu has ordered the monitoring of the officers and men of the AFP in case any of them are enticed to join the mounting calls for  President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to resign.

A military spokesman yesterday (July 4) said the Intelligence Service of the AFP was monitoring the troops to prevent them from “going astray.”

Lt. Col. Buenaventura Pascual, AFP public information chief, added that Army Col. Gregorio Catapang who had been linked to a reported plot to oust the president, had reported to Abu to clear his name. Catapang was supposedly recruiting his peers and subordinates to switch their allegiance to Vice President Noli de Castro, a report that he denied.

Catapang, along with Maj. Jason Aquino, were tagged as the recruiters of possible supporters of a De Castro presidency.

Pascual admitted that there are ongoing efforts to recruit officers and soldiers to join efforts to bring down the Arroyo administration. He added that the AFP was solidly behind their commander-in-chief, President Arroyo.

COMMENT: The Constitution says the military and the police must be shielded from politics. This seems ideal, but not practical. Since Edsa in ’86, officers of the AFP have considered it their role to come to the aid of the country even if it meant getting involved in politics. Such a belief can no longer be removed from their mindset. And everyone agrees that whoever would be president has to have the support of the majority of the AFP, as well as the Philippine National Police.