e thought new AFP chief
Gen. Alexander Yano was just being diplomatic when he said he does not see any
need to change the counter-insurgency program of his predecessor, Gen. (ret.)
Hermogenes Esperon. Upon assuming the top AFP post in July 2006, Esperon’s
announced a "defined and comprehensive scheme of maneuver to defeat the enemy,
especially in priority guerrilla fronts" to realize his commander-in-chief’s
wish of reducing the communist rebellion into a nuisance by 2010.
Well, we’re already almost halfway to 2010 and the communist
rebels have proven uncooperative. They are still at it, plodding on with their
strategy of surrounding the city from the countryside (a strategy which we
personally think has slim to zero chance of succeeding in toppling the
government, for whatever our opinion is worth). In fact, even Esperon conceded
recently the AFP was able to dismantle fewer than 10 of the scores of the
rebels’ guerrilla fronts.
An honest assessment of the AFP’s performance will show
Esperon was less than honest in declaring "mission accomplished" upon his exit.
We don’t know what Esperon exactly meant by his "scheme of
maneuver." But we do know one of its components that to this day he and his
commander-in-chief refuse to acknowledge. It’s the policy of targeting the
so-called rebel political infrastructure which in practice meant executing
unarmed and above-ground rebel sympathizers, imposing food blockades on
suspected guerrilla fronts and conducting mass roundups ("sonas").
Yano was said to be among the senior generals who found
Esperon’s "dirty war" offensive to their warrior’s code. While we take such
talks with a grain of salt, it’s a fact that summary executions sharply went
down during Yano’s stint as Army chief.
Yano, at first blush, appears to be no clone of Esperon so
it’s puzzling why he is pursuing another Esperon "innovation." We are referring
to the award of cash bounty to units successful in dismantling guerrilla fronts.
The money, P300,000 per front dismantled, is supposed to go
to the unit’s operational fund for follow-through operations. Be that as it may,
it’s still reward in cash for doing one’s duty. The word for soldiers who do
what they have to do for cash, we believe, is mercenary.
We expected no better from Esperon, he who allegedly helped
cook the election returns in 2004 in favor of Gloria. But not from Yano who is
by reputation thoroughly professional.
Then again, what do we civilians know? All things considered, Yano could be
Tweedledum to Esperon’s Tweedledee.
