A JOINTLY ENGAGED TRANSFORMING FORCE
FOR GREATER PEACE AND SECURITY
Assumption-of-Command Speech of
Lt General Edgar Fallorina AFP
Commanding General, Philippine Air Force
09 March 2016
FAB Grandstand, Fernando Air Base, Lipa City
As a young pilot a few years back, there was nothing more thrilling or exciting for
me than receiving my orders and being told for the first time, “You have it. You’re the Pilotin-Command now.” In one breath, it captured the essence of what every rated officer
aspires to become, to be in command of the cockpit, in control of one’s flight, and in
charge of flying the unit mission. Since then, following every new assignment, when the
responsibility for the mission and the welfare of my men got entrusted in my hands, I
always felt the same thrill and excitement rush through my back.
Signing my designation orders and assuming the command of the Philippine Air
Force today, however, is starkly different. The honor I feel is not only overpowering; the
burden is also overwhelming. Truly I am humbled beyond words. And I can only utter a
short prayer of thanks and praise to Our Lord God Almighty, for this blessing and test.
And along with the prayer is my expression of gratitude to our President and
Commander-in-Chief, His Excellency Benigno Simeon Aquino III for this designation and
bestowal of trust. Mahal na Pangulo, maraming salamat po sa pagtatalagang ito at lalo na
po sa inyong pagtitiwala.
Let me also thank our Secretary of National Defense, the Honorable Voltaire
Gazmin, for his vote of confidence and full endorsement. I would not have gone this far,
and my cup overflows.
May I thank as well our AFP Chief of Staff, General Iriberri, my immediate former
taskmaster at General Headquarters who is now my direct Commander, for this affirmation
and strong recommendation. Maraming salamat, sir.
In the same vein, I wish to acknowledge the 33rd Commanding General of the
Philippine Air Force, Lt General Jeffrey F Delgado, for his ever positive support and the
leadership track that he has laid for me to follow. Heartening to note that the Air Force
track at this time of my assumption has the marks of supersonic tires on it.
Mindful of how I got here, my gratitude also goes to all those who have been
instrumental in my climb to the top all these years: from my former colleagues and
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comrades in the units I served, particularly the Air Commandos and Hornets of the 205th
Helicopter Wing and the warriors of TOG in Tawi-Tawi, with whom I earned my spurs and
stabilized my wings.
I wish to thank my former mentors and co-workers in the service, from my
instructors in all training institutions, including the Flying School, to the ranks of noncommissioned officers and files of civilian employees, with whom I had the privilege of
working with. Hindi ko na kayo maisa-isa, pero taos-puso akong nagpapasalamat sa
inyong lahat.
And at the center of my life, let me acknowledge with love and affection my family,
whose understanding and support have always been unconditional and unchanging - my
wife, Erica, and our children Feona who is away pursuing a dream of a lifetime, Wrylo who
is having his final exams in school right now and our infatigable Benjo. Thank you for the
sacrifices, thank you for filling in during my extended absence. Collectively, you are all
indeed the winds beneath my wings.
Let me also gratefully recognize what remained of the original Fallorina family, my
sister Ms Eva Fallorina who came all the way from Jaro, Leyte. Through her, I thank my
parents Juan and Honoria Fallorina, a local policeman and a public school teacher
respectively, for inculcating in me the discipline and work ethics that brought me where I
am today; my big brothers Roy, who succumbed to cancer at an early age; and 2LT Elmer
Fallorina PAF, a member of the PAFFS Class 80-A, my reason for entering the PMA and
my inspiration throughout my military career. He loved the Air Force so much, he joined
our Creator still strapped to the seat of a UH-1H helicopter somewhere in the waters of
Cebu more than 33 years ago.
In taking over the command of the Philippine Air Force, I am instantly awed by the
history of our organization and I feel dwarfed by those who preceded me here the former
Commanding Generals of the PAF - all great Commanders and leaders of character. I
salute all of them. I admire their legacies. I pray that I would somehow come close to their
worth.
And thinking of the accomplishments of my predecessor, I feel no immediate
temptation to change any policy coming in. Changes in leadership, after all, do not
necessarily call for changes in policy.
Instead, I feel compelled to promptly resume pace and power up. For we cannot
afford to pause. The challenges we face not only as an Air Force, but as a service branch
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of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, remain extraordinary, our tasks are enormous, and
our time is short.
The challenges are extraordinary because our security environment has unraveled
in ways we never imagined before. Long used to divisions among the threat groups within
our country, today we are seeing fusions and affiliations and the blurring of lines. Long
familiar with what lies within our national territory as part of our heritage and our sovereign
rights and entitlements, today we are seeing strange landscapes and activities probing and
pressing on our sense of collective security. Long equipped to serve our people in nontraditional ways, today we are confronted with the greater need to counter the impact of
disasters and calamities. And there’s much more.
This year happens to mark the period of our national elections. This year marks,
too, the handing down of the UN Arbitral Tribunal’s decision. This year is bound to see a
jump in activities in our conflicted domains, particularly in the cyber and air domains and in
the maritime areas. This year also holds the highest rounds in leadership transitions within
and outside our organization. This year likewise signals the redirection of our international
defense and security engagements. And this year looks to further test our collective
resolve to pursue our targets in internal peace and security.
Our tasks in this kind of environment are enormous because, like the rest of the
AFP, we in the Air Force need to continuously change and transform. For where before
we used to employ traditional methods, today we must retool for asymmetric challenges.
Where before we used to use our force at any cost, today we must relearn to fly and
fight so that we won’t unnecessarily lose our force. Where we used not to explain our
actions, today we must know how to speak and share our values with the public. And
where before we moved and operated within resources, today we must be reasonably
resourceful.
Given the extraordinary conditions we’re in, I feel compelled to focus my attention
only on the priority things that matter - first, on ourselves as an Air Force organization;
then, on the kind of service we need to deliver; then, finally on the kind of service arm we
want to be in the future.
If we are to sustain our momentum, we must not only maintain back pressure on the
five modernization pillars to ensure our transformation,but we must know where the net
results of our efforts will find its manifestation vis-a-vis the challenges we face. The
manifestation has to be in our solidarity with the AFP and in our developing capabilities to
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add to the strength of our Armed Forces, particularly as altogether we face overwhelming
odds this year.
As the new CGPAF, I shall therefore lead efforts for the Air Force to become
fundamentally joint, broadly engaged and effectively transforming. In short, a jointly
engaged transforming force for greater peace and security.
To become fundamentally joint, we need to enhance jointness and de-emphasize
our distinction as an Air Force with other major services. From the level of General
Headquarters to the level of the Unified Commands and our sister services, our Armed
Forces are essentially interlocked in pursuit of unified strategies, guided by synchronized
roadmaps, hardened with joint capabilities, tempered by uniform standards, and sustained
by reinforcing command relationships.
To be broadly engaged, the PAF must have the capacity and ability to reach out to
a broader range of partners in different regions at various levels and roles in order to
address shared concerns and common challenges. Our broad engagements should
necessarily lead to reinforced alliances, new relationships, evolving complementary
capabilities and sustained cooperation for mutual ends.
To effectively transform, we will be guided by the primary objective of Republic
Act 10349, and our eyes fixed on Horizons 1 and 2, which hold the development of our
core systems and processes, as well as part of our operational and strategic defense
capabilities.
Over and beyond those, our transformation will include not only rethinking our
approaches, but also revolutionizing the way we think about our rapidly changing
environment, and about our strategies to address the biggest threats and challenges.
After all, our air or maritime borders do not hold our first lines of defense; our shared
values, our wits, our rationality and our creative genius do.
Sharpening ourselves as a jointly engaged transforming force is one thing;
contributing to greater peace and security is another. As your new CGPAF, let me give
you a glimpse of the landscape ahead.
The complexion of our internal security continues to improve, but there is still much
work to be done. We must therefore sustain our contributions to the IPSP objectives within
our set timelines.
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In pursuit of peace, we must anticipate the emergence of conflicts and always bear
one thing in mind: the avoidance of any violation of human rights. At the end of the day,
there is no greater good we can give than the shared narrative of never having violated
any civilian or human rights.
The picture of disasters and calamities in our country may have appeared better,
but there is no certainty that another super typhoon or a major flood or earthquake would
not hit any of our AORs. We must be ready 24/7 to help our people prevent, prepare for,
respond to or recover from the impact of disasters.
Lastly, the election period is upon us. As part of the democratic process, our AFP is
committed to help protect the sanctity of the vote. The PAF will only participate by having
every airman cast his ballot.
Given all these multiple challenges, your Philippine Air Force cannot do no less.We
will transform even as we perform and our transformation will be sustained on the pillars of
good governance.
The way ahead for the Air Force, to be sure, is fraught with many other threats,
many other challenges, and unexpected surprises. But suffice it to say that I am honored
and committed to lead the Philippine Air Force with clearheaded focus and selfless intent.
In this regard, allow me at this point to invoke God’s blessing and protection. Dear
Lord, as I begin today, please clear my mind and calm my heart and lead my hand in
accomplishing the mission of the Philippine Air Force. As Psalm 143:10 says, let your
Good Spirit “lead me on level ground.” And, may I also add, deliver all our commanders,
our troops our units, all our officers, men and women, along the straight and narrow path,
across the treacherous mountains, against the mighty turbulent winds, and past the rough
and stormy seas.
As I close, my friends, let me ask that you join hands with me and with the rest of
the Air Force as we resume the difficult task of winning the needed peace in our time. Help
me continue to build the Air Force we need for these extraordinarily trying times: an Air
Force reformed and protective of our people, an Air Force responsive to all threats and
challenges, a jointly engaged transforming force for our greater peace and security.
God bless our Philippine Air Force and God bless our Armed Forces of the
Philippines. Maraming salamat at muli magandang umaga sa inyong lahat.
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