BY JOCELYN MONTEMAYOR

EXECUTIVE Secretary Eduardo Ermita yesterday said he was not aware if Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr. is being considered for a government post after his retirement in May.

Asked about an appointment as national security adviser, Ermita said Esperon is qualified but the position is not vacant.

He belied talks Esperon’s tour of duty was extended by President Arroyo as government awaits vacancies in government. He said the President simply wants to ensure continuity in the programs of the Armed Forces, particularly the campaign against the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army.

"Siguro binibigyan lang ng pagkakataon na ma-implement niya (Esperon) iyung kanyang plano and then the incoming chief of staff could acquaint himself. So by the time he takes over, he has already a feel of the insurgency situation," he said.

Esperon is reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56 on February 9. Over the weekend, the Palace announced a three-month extension of his term. He will be succeeded by Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano, Army chief.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro defended the legality of the extension.

"Regardless of birth date, the Constitution provides that the military chief of staff could serve his term up to a maximum period of three years," he said.

He said Esperon was named AFP chief in July 2006 and could therefore serve up to July 2009 if the President so desires.

With Esperon’s extension, Yano is serving as AFP chief for only 13 months as he is turning 56 in June next year.

Esperon said he has given Yano clearance to meet with the members of his joint staff in preparation for his takeover of the 120,000-strong military force.

The members of the joint staff are the primary advisers of the AFP chief on specific fields, including operations, intelligence and personnel.

Esperon said Yano has "vast experience" and is ready to occupy the top AFP post. "But there are arrangements that we are looking into. I have something to tell him – the support system, force mix, we are going to have changes in the staff."

Esperon said in the past 17 months, he has learned the "style, the right force mix, what is the approach in addressing the guerrilla fronts" of the NPA.

Esperon is targeting to dismantle 17 of the 87 guerrilla fronts during the first quarter.

The Church group Promotion of Church People’s Response said Esperon’s stand counters calls from religious groups for the resumption of peace negotiations between government and the communist movement.

The peace talks, which started in the 80s, hit a snag in 2004 when the United States included the CPP and NPA in its list of foreign terrorist organizations.

"Esperon is a bad omen for the peace process. Given the dominance of militarists, led by Esperon himself, it appears that the calls for resumption of peace talks based on prior agreements will again be ignored as the military has been given marching orders to crush the CPP-NPA-NDFP at all cost," said the group’s secretary general, Amie Dural.

The group also said the public should be vigilant as it said Arroyo could be in the "dry run" process on how she could extend her term beyond 2010. – With Victor Reyes and Gerard Naval