The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (CSAFP), Gen. Andres Centino, was accorded arrival honors by fleet-marine honor guard at the Philippine Fleet headquarters in Naval Base Heracleo Alano (NBHA) here on Wednesday, March 9, marking his first official visit to the Philippine Navy (PN).
The visiting CSAFP was welcomed by PN Flag Officer In Command, Vice Adm. Adeluis Bordado along with Vice Commander, Rear Adm. Antonio Palces, Philippine Marine Corps Commandant, Major Gen. Nestor Herico, Philippine Fleet Commander, Rear Adm. Nichols Driz and members of the PF command team.
The CSAFP then held a dialogue with PN senior leaders followed by a Talk to Troops where he personally addressed select officers, enlisted personnel and civilian human resources aboard NBHA, with other personnel coming from the different PN units nationwide, including those from detachments at the Kalayaan Island Group, attending virtually.
General Centino extolled the Navys modernization efforts, sharing his insights on a recent visit to Western Command in Palawan where he had the opportunity “to see for myself how the Philippine Navy has progressed over the years.
I can see that the branch of service of the future will be the Philippine Navy, added Centino citing the shift of focus from addressing internal security threats to territorial defense.
The CSAFP also lauded the PN’s support and contributions to humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR) and rehabilitation efforts following the onslaught of Typhoon Odette in parts of Mindanao, Visayas and Palawan in December last year which no less than the President very much appreciated.
Earlier, the Naval Air Wing conducted an orientation flight for General Centino aboard one of the AgustaWestland 109 naval helicopters, and subsequently awarded him the Honorary Flag Rank Command-at-Sea and Command Naval Aviator’s badges.
This visit followed the military tradition that newly assumed AFP chief would make the rounds to all major services and other military camps as a way to rally the troops, reaffirm commitment and boost their morale toward achieving the AFP’s overall objectives. — PN
