CAMP AGUINALDO, Quezon City -- The Armed Forces of the Philippines welcomed General Andres C Centino as its 59th Chief of Staff, replacing Lieutenant General Bartolome Vicente Bacarro in a change of command ceremony held on Saturday, January 7.

The ceremony was presided over by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin at the AFP Commissioned Officers Country in Camp Aguinaldo. General Centino took his oath before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Malacañan Palace on January 6 following his appointment to hold the top military position.

He previously served as the AFP Chief of Staff from November 12, 2021, to August 8, 2022. Within that period, he implemented four major thrusts within the military organization: operational efficiency, optimal use of resources, advancement of professionalism and meritocracy within the organization, and capability development.

“As I take on the responsibility as Chief of Staff, I reiterate what I have focused on in the past to comply with the urgent tasks at hand. While significant gains have been achieved in our security campaigns, there remain critical tasks to be carried out that need to be fully complied. We must ensure that all our resources are employed to definitively address all the current and emerging threats,” General Centino said.

On the other hand, Lieutenant General Bacarro, who assumed the top position on August 8, 2022, is set to retire from military service. For more than five months serving as Chief of Staff, he advocated his five-pronged thrust for the AFP: Unparalleled professionalism, Noble utilization of resources, Invigorating capability development, Tenacity in sustaining gains, and Yearning for service excellence.

In his message, he conveyed his gratitude to the men and women of the AFP and his family, who served as his inspiration.

“It is my fervent wish that I can repay in whatever way I can all the support you have given me. I have felt the outpouring of support coming from well-wishers as I retire today,” he said.

Meanwhile, Secretary Bersamin said that he was much impressed by the AFP’s exhibition of obeisance to a great and hallowed tradition of the Change of Command.

“This tradition is worth emulating by the civilian sector of the population, and I will remember this moment and look back to this occasion as that beacon light in order to guide smoother transitions in the civilian and political sectors of our society. I am sure that every one of you knows your oaths of office and has expressed and practiced your loyalty to the constitution and to the flag. Continue on that course,” he said. (AFP)

Photos by Sgt Ray Ambay PA and TSg Randulf Obinque PAF/PAOAFP