President Rodrigo Duterte seemed to have changed his mind about the FA-50 jets when he said on June 2 that he will try to acquire 12 more fighter jets for the Armed Forces of the Philippines. This is a total change in his attitude towards the fighter jets, which he used to describe as a “waste of money.”
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Duterte told the troops from the 102nd Infantry Brigage in Ipil, Zamaboanga on June 2 that he would purchase more jets and more equipment, all brand new ones.
“Kung buhayin pa ako ng Panginoon Diyos, you will have about 24 jet planes. Mag-acquire pa ako ng 12. Subukan ko. You have the best equipment, ‘yung — ang sources natin sa baril ninyo is just two nations. I will not mention the names,” Duterte said.
“During my time, wala na akong second-hand mga barko, barko. It has to be brand new. Hindi na ako tatanggap ng mga equipment ng military na second-hand. Iyong ibinibigay ng Amerikano, ayaw ko na ‘yan. Even I have to spend double the money,” he added.
During the same speech on June 2, he also expressed confidence that the troops would win against the ISIS-inspired Maute Group in Marawi City. He also said that it has taken some time for the government forces to defeat the extremists because they considered civilian lives and respect the Geneva Convention and other treaties.
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“”But no we are a government and we are bound by rules and even treaties, ‘yung mga Geneva Convention. That’s their favorite sanctuary. They also refer the Geneva Convention ‘pag pabor nila. ‘Pag nadehado sila, wala silang ingay sa Geneva Convention. And that is always the problem because the government can never ignore treaties and the laws of the land,” he said.
“Kung terorista lang din tayo, madali na natapos ‘yan. Bombahan mo lang lahat, tapos na isang araw. Eh marami na akong jet planes ngayon, sampu na ‘yan,” Duterte added.
The Marawi conflict started on May 23, leading Duterte to declare martial law in Mindanao. The fighting is still ongoing, with the 60-day deadline for the martial law declaration on July 22 fast approaching. However, the AFP and PNP asked Duterte to extend martial law in Mindanao.
Jets only for ‘ceremonial fly-by’
Last June 2016, Duterte deemed the jets unusable against fighting insurgents, adding that they can only be used for ceremonial fly-bys.
“To the Air Force, do not misconstrue me. I’m a Filipino. I’m a citizen of this country and I have every right to say what I want to say. Sayang ang pera dun (Money was wasted there). You cannot use them for anti-insurgency, which is the problem at the moment. You can only use these for ceremonial fly-by,” Duterte said.
The Aquino administration purchased 12 FA-50 jets from South Korea’s Aerospace Institute worth P18.9 billion to improve the Philippines’ territorial defense capabilities. Two of the jets were delivered in November 2015, while 10 others arrived this year.
The jets indeed conducted fly-bys during the 80th anniversary of the AFP in Pampanga and Jose Rizal’s 119th death anniversary in Manila in December 2015. Recently, they were used to support government troops in Marawi City, as confirmed by AFP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla.
Sources: ( sunstar.com.ph , philstar.com , news.abs-cbn.com , rappler.com , pna.gov.ph )
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