Your 1st for Philippine Defense


Thursday, August 13, 2015

Revisiting the Government-to-Government Process - The Better Acquisition Alternative for the Armed Forces of the Philippines

MaxDefense has been in up online since May 2013, and for the past 2 years, it believes that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has been improved a little better now compared to then. A good sign, after a long time of almost no improvements for close to 2 decades. MaxDefense commends the leadership of President Benigno S. Aquino III for bringing such improvements to the armed forces for the past few years.

But all these gains still fail to avoid us from looking at the other side of the coin. As MaxDefense pointed out in its previous blog entry, the Aquino administration took more than 2 years to approve the endorsed wishlist of the AFP for its procurement under the Revised AFP Modernization Program RA 10349. And so far, the AFP has not receive any major equipment that could be used to defend the country's EEZ and interests in the West Philippine Sea other than 2 gun frigates converted from coast guard cutters.

Add to that other disappointing issues. Just within this year alone, the Department of National Defense (DND) has consistently been in the hot seat and named as one of the most corrupt departments of the Aquino administration. Several accusations of graft and corruption, favoritism, bid rigging, and many other issues within its ranks were reported, and although nothing has been proven yet in the courts of law, the mere presence of these reports are disturbing enough. As they say, if there's smoke, there's a fire. And most of these issues were tied to the bidding and procurement under the AFP Modernization Program.

With all these issues, is the current procurement process really the problem that is affecting all the issues mentioned above? Is it still the best way to modernize the AFP? How far did the AFP Modernization Program (AFPMP) really did move from then till now?



The Great Italian Sale - The Maestrale-class Frigate Saga

After a hopeful start with the AFPMP under the leadership of Pres. Aquino, the AFP formulated a list of what it needs to have to properly defend the country from inside and out. And among those being looked upon to boost the AFP's capabilities and equipment acquisition opportunity 4 years ago were the acquisition of cheap, used, readily available, and still capable Excess Defense Articles (EDA) from friendly or allied nations.

For those who can remember these events a few years ago, many were delighted with the plans to acquire from Italy two units of refurbished Maestrale-class frigates, together with several other equipment offered by the said country including the a couple of Soldati-class frigates and Minerva-class corvettes, hundreds of VCC-1 armored personnel carriers, dozens of FH70 155mm howitzers and Centauro tank destroyers and FH70 155mm howitzers, a squadron or two of AMX attack aircraft, and even a few Tranche 1 EF-2000 Eurofighters. Thus called "The Great Italian Sale", or simply "The Italian Package" within those in the DND and AFP circles.

Those where the days when the military was looking forward to acquire a lot from the Italians, with many in the military saying that finally, the Philippines could now catch-up with the rest in the region. It was even among the reasons why MaxDefense started, to discuss to the public what is happening and what these equipment are for to the ordinary Filipino, in anticipation of many questions coming in from the public.


Remember the Maestrale-class frigate saga? This was actually the start and end of the plans to acquire excess defense articles from Italy. 3 years on, the Philippine Navy still has no frigates except for the Hamilton-class cutters from the US.
Photo taken from Wikipedia.

Aside from Italy, many other countries showed interest to sell their excess defense articles to the Philippines, thanks (or no thanks) to the economic crisis in Europe that time. France, Spain, and even the UK and Germany, were all looking forward for a possible sale, which not only helps them get some earnings while reducing their expenses in maintaining their armed forces, but at the same time was looking at this goodwill gesture to improve relations with the Philippines. Suddenly you can hear news or rumors on the possibility of acquiring Mirage 2000 or Mirage F1 fighter aircraft from France, Leopard 2 main battle tanks from Germany, Santa Maria-class frigates and Descubierta-class corvettes from Spain, and many more as an alternative to what the Italians have to offer.


The French offered excess Mirage 2000 fighters, but nothing was heard after on this offer when the Philippine government decided to go brand-new for its military equipment acquisitions.



The Fall of Plans to Acquire Excess Defense Articles from Europe

Then, it happened. Changes in the military leadership, together with alternatives from other countries, suddenly changed the mindset on the acquisition. The Philippines dropped plans to acquire the Maestrale-class frigates in which almost all the offers made by Italy were tied with. This was because the Philippine government decided to acquire brand-new military equipment by tendering in conjunction with RA 9184 Government Procurement Reform Act. One by one, all the offers from friendly countries died down, and instead the government invited arms manufacturers to join the tenders.


The Italians also offered a hundred of their VCC-1 Camillino armored personnel carriers, an Italian version of the American M113. Eventually, the Philippines decided ask the Americans for M113A2 which was provided by grant. But until now, not even 1 of the 114 M113A2 provided by the Americans are in Philippine Army hands.


The intention was good, as it means the AFP will be getting brand new equipment instead of refurbished old units. But 5 years after, the AFP is still nowhere the original plan that was promised by the Aquino administration, and nowhere from the projected force should the government acquired all those used refurbished European military wares.

Reasons vary depending on who you talk to. The Department of National Defense claims that the ships were too old and expensive for their age, and that buying new would be more beneficial and will not as expensive as earlier thought compared to the offers made by Italy. Some people say otherwise, that the deal fell through because of indecisiveness of the defense leadership. 

Other credible sources say that officials within the AFP and DND are against EDA because they won't be earning anything due to the Government-to-Government (G2G) nature of the deals, and other reasons that are only beneficial to the people involved in the procurement system. MaxDefense won't be too specific on these because in the end, it turned out that the AFP will not be as effective as we thought by 2015.




Failures of the Current Acquisition Process of the DND

The introduction of the system as indicated by the RA 9184 has brought transparency to the procurement system, which was unseen for a long time. Theoretically, the system's safeguards and procedures should instill a fair, corrupt-free procurement process to the corruption-hounded DND and AFP, and clean the institutions from the terrible coinage as among the most corrupt in the government.

But it seems that there are still people who were able to manipulate the system, and still enabled them to continue corruption by going around the implementing rules and regulations. This might not just be the case in the DND and AFP, but also in several other government agencies and departments.

Budgetary issues, red tape, favoritism, failed tenders, lack of experience by the DND and AFP planners, graft and corruption issues, delayed product deliveries, failed products, changing policies of military leaders, leadership incompetency, and other reasons have further delayed the acquisition process of the AFPMP.

Among the most painful of all is the corruption concerns because not only is it delaying the process, but also jacks-up the prices of equipment being acquired to the expense of tax payers, and becomes a reason for substandard equipment to be acquired. Among those corruption issues raised only this year against the DND and AFP leadership include the following issues, but not limited to:

- the acquisition of Dornier-Bell UH-1D combat utility helicopters from Rice Aviation Services Inc., in which accusations of corruption, bid rigging, and flawed products were thrown against the DND and PAF;
- the realignment of the Shore-Based Missile System by the Philippine Army, and supported by the DND leadership, which was accused as a way to get commissions and kickbacks, and as a vendetta against the local agent of Israel Military Industries for filing a graft case against the incumbent Chief of Staff of the AFP;
- allegations that some officials of the DND asked arms manufacturers for a "joining fee" to enable them to bid for certain projects of the AFPMP, which includes Israel Aircraft Industries-Elta and Raytheon

Although no proof has been laid forward until now, the point that there is a new damaging issue coming out in almost every month shows that there is really something wrong with the system. And with the elections coming in very soon, MaxDefense expects more negative news against the AFP and DND, further damaging the effort to modernize the AFP in what remains of the limited time until Pres. Aquino steps down from office.


The realignment of the Shore-Based Missile System has been among the most highly debated upon by defense experts and law makers, and may even cost the appointment of an AFP Chief of Staff if proven to be irregular.



2015 - Where is the AFP Modernization Program Now?

As discussed in the previous MaxDefense blog entry, our assessment is gloomy on where the modernization program is right now. A little summary of our previous assessment:

- the old AFP Modernization Program under Republic Act 7898 is still incomplete until now, with several more projects still ongoing, or has not even started. As of last check, the DND still has around 15 or more projects ongoing or for implementation as of this writing, with the acquisition of a 3rd Hamilton-class High Endurance Cutter from the US Coast Guard as probably the last to be implemented.

- the newer Revised AFP Modernization Program under Republic Act 10349 has only 2 of 33 projects awarded as of this writing, although the government announced during the recent State of the Nation Address that it has recently signed 30 projects for implementation and funding by the Department of Budget Management. None of the 30 projects have been awarded so far.

One of its projects, the Combat Utility Helicopter acquisition for 8 Bell 412EP helicopters, is the most advanced of the projects in terms of implementation schedule, with all 8 helicopters already in the Philippines but can't be considered complete until now because they are not yet commissioned with the Philippine Air Force. The other project, the F/SAA/LIFT acquisition wherein the project will be completed only by 2017.


Only the CUH acquisition has so far gained fruit of all the acquisition plans under RAFPMP RA 10349, as all 8 units of the Bell 412EP are in the country. But deliveries can't be considered complete until now because the PAF has not yet accepted all 8 units as of this writing.
Photo taken from Philstar.


To be fair to the Aquino administration, he has so far done more than the combined administrations of 3 past presidents before him. But as MaxDefense said in the past, the expectations from the public and the defense community was so high because it was Pres. Aquino himself who pegged the expectations to the public by his public announcements and promises. He raised it up with his promises of good governance, efficient, and corruption-free government.



With this, MaxDefense is offering this recommendation based on two problems encountered in the acquisition process: time or speed of acquisition, and corruption. The current system has so many loopholes to allow corruption to take place.


Speeding-up the AFP Modernization: Government-to-Government (G2G) Deals

With a limited time remaining, MaxDefense believes that the only way to improve the AFP in such a short time is by returning back to the option of acquiring excess defense articles from friendly and allied countries through Government-to-Government (G2G) process.

So far, several government agencies has already seen that the current system based on the RA 9184 Government Procurement Reform Act is not applicable for defense-related acquisitions. Moves have been made within the AFP and DND to push to Congress reforms that will enable them to bypass the RA 9184, as DND ASec. Patrick Velez confirmed in one report, "RA 9184 seems not to be fully responsive to the needs of the AFP".

Should any legal changes be made to exempt the AFP Modernization Program from strictly following RA 9184, it would then allow the DND and AFP to go for G2G deals with friendly countries.

Being G2G, the Philippine government can minimize or thoroughly avoid corruption and kickbacks by defense and military officials, as the Philippine government, through its defense department, officially deal directly with the defense ministry of the the seller/donor countries including payments and other financial issues. Corruption can probably only happen if the seller/donor country's defense ministry officials are also corrupt.



G2G of Refurbished Excess Defense Articles

Excess Defense Articles are currently abundant in several advanced nations from Europe, Asia, and the US. It may not be immediately available as expected due to the need to refurbish them and meet certain requirements of the AFP, which may take some time but not as long as constructing a new one.

But with the budget for the AFPMP and RAFPMP already allocated for projects, the only way to allow funds to flow to this direction is by either reallocating them from similar projects covered by the current AFPMP/RAFPMP, or by providing a separate budget for projects under this.

As an example, let's look at the current projects of the Revised AFP Modernization Program under RA 10349. The Philippine Air Force (PAF) requires Long Range Patrol Aircraft, while the Philippine Navy (PN) requires Frigates and ASW helicopters.

Currently, the DND and PAF wanted to pursue the acquisition of new aircraft while also discussing with Japan and the US to acquire EDA refurbished P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft. If there are no objections from these countries, then the DND should just push through with the procurement of the P-3C through G2G using the budget for the LRPA project. MaxDefense believes that the LRPA budget can acquire more than 2 fully equipped and newly refurbished P-3C Orion.

As for the Navy, acquisition of refurbished frigates from Europe, Korea or the US can be made. After repair and refurbishing, MaxDefense still expects the first ship to be in service earlier than constructing a new one. And with a Php18 billion budget, the PN can definitely acquire more than 2 frigates. The US is also offering refurbished SH-60B/F anti-submarine helicopters, which can be had for a portion of the PN's budget for each new ASW helicopter. Even countries with more financial capability like Spain bought these refurbished helicopters to fill in the requirements.


Instead of waiting for the South Korean government to grant it to the Philippines, the Philippines must offer to acquire EDA ships from South Korea, with the willingness to pay for them. MaxDefense believes than if acquired now, the ships could be in service by next year.
Photo of Ulsan-class frigate taken from warshipsimages.com




Procurement of New Equipment through G2G

Aside from EDAs, the government can also simultaneously acquire brand new defense equipment for projects meeting the medium to long term needs of the AFP. There's still nothing better than brand new if the need is less immediate. And this can be done also by G2G. Although it may not speed up the construction and delivery of new equipment, it can reduce the time needed during the planning and procurement phase, while also discouraging corruption within the DND and AFP. It is currently an accepted way of fast-tracking acquisitions by the DND as seen by the speed of delivery of the Bell 412EP and FA-50PH aircraft that underwent G2G.

If only most bid-ticket projects under AFPMP and RAFPMP can be shifted to G2G negotiations instead of bidding, MaxDefense believes that most of the projects can be completed and the equipment delivered earlier by at least several months up to a year earlier. 

This also avoids being too dependent on the decision to acquire a system because of cost parameters, as G2G ensures that the military can acquire specifically what they need. This procedure will allow the AFP to avoid getting cheap but possibly substandard or not really their top choice, as topnotch defense materiel are not normally cheap especially that the AFP prefer Western-made systems rather than the cheaper Eastern, Russian, of Chinese systems.

An example of where a tender has become disadvantageous over a G2G deal may include the Combat Utility Helicopter for the Philippine Air Force. Based on accounts with officers of the PAF, they actually prefer to acquire the Bell 412 as its next CUH. The specifications used on the tender was based on the Bell 412EP but some specific requirements were loosen up to allow other bidders to join the tender. We all know that AgustaWestland PZL won the project as they were the only one who can provide a similar helicopter at a lower cost than the budget allocated. And we all know what happened afterwards, until the DND decided to go G2G with the Canadian Commercial Corporation to acquire another batch of CUH, but this time acquiring the Bell 412EP.

Projects that have been awarded and are expected to have repeat orders should not undergo bidding as well, but by G2G deal. Among examples are the Harris Falcon II & III radios, the C-295M and NC-212i, and many others. An equivalent to these equipment are expected to be ordered in the next phases of the RAFPMP, and bidding won't help which may also derail standardization should another supplier and product wins next time.


Harris Falcon II and III radios were among those acquired by the AFP through Foreign Military Sales of the US government, which is essentially a G2G deal. Repeat orders were made for the past 7 years, with another major order made just late last year. More are expected to be acquired from Harris on the next phases of the Revised AFP Modernization Program.


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With the DND's procurement process already becoming less reliable and less acceptable to the general public and to the stakeholders in the government, the DND, if they still have some good men left, should push hard for reforms that would allow defense procurement to be faster and less prone to corruption.

Also, the legislative and executive branches of the government should act fast to pass a new or revised law to back-up the said changes. It is good to note that there are now some lawmakers who are putting their foot forward to help the AFP attain its goals even if it seems insurmountable due to the large amount of budget is needed to overcome their needs.




49 comments:

  1. Sir wala na atang balak ang gobyerno natin mag upgrade ng military equipment,puro salita at press release na lang.matapang tayo sa salita,pero kulang sa gawa at kagamitang,baka pag nasakopna tayo saka bibili.utak talangka talaga

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    1. Damn u captcha. I miss a minute from being the first poster.

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  3. This is a great suggestive article Sir Max.

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  4. Aquino has failed to modernize our AFP, until now we dont have any missile capable ship, jets or Surface to Air. He is not a reliable President as he promise a lot to our AFP and to her boss.

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    1. Lem1, as Sir Max has said, PNoy has done more for the AFP than his 3 predecessors combined. The FA-50 jets will start arriving here either late this year or early next year. He also needs the cooperation of Congress to get things done.

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    2. I think its unfair to say that pnoy has done more to the AFP than the 3 previous administration combined. This sounds more of politics Sir Max. I think this was the speech of Pnoy during the inauguration of the LCH donated by the Australian govt. Personally nayayabangan ako sa sinabi niya.
      You cant simply buy that hardware without fixing first the economy right? The reason we have the money to spend around because GMA fixed our economy thru fiscal reforms and exited the IMF during GMA and that’s a fact. Pnoy wont give credit that to GMA period. Renbios

      http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116733450832461758
      http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2006/pr06302.htm

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  5. I also embarrass with thie newly installed Chief of AFP. IncompetentI He still don’t know what’s happening around the Philippines, the issue in the Spratly, the threat from foreign country and the position of the Philippines when it comes to defense which is still the most weakest in Asia. Iriberri RESIGN!!!!

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  6. parang nabayaran ng china defence department

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  7. A petition thru Change.org must be made to force the DND to use G2G for the Afp modrrnization. China is moving towards invasion of pagasa island etc based on thier cryptic messages recently published.

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  8. A lot of lost opportunities from that great italian sale sigh

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  9. Kapag gutom ang buaya hahanap talaga yan nang paraan para maka kain. Parang...sila...

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  10. Wow Sir Max! When you recalled the Italian Package Deal it really gave a frustrating chill to my spin. It was not just because of how great the package was, but of how very Generous and well aware of the Italian Government was to our needs. Alam kong hindi lang ako ang naa-sar sa mga pangyayari, cguro ganito na talaga tayong mga pilipino, lalona sa gobyerno at hukbong sandatahan at e sali na natin ang ka pulisan. Kung saan my tama at matuwid na paraan mas pinapabor ang baloktot at mali-maling mga gawain na systema. Kung toto-usin 1 out 10 lang ang may gusto umunlad ang ating bansa. Dahil ika nga Pera-Pera lang.

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  11. Very informative and depressing...

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  12. Let's just cut to the bull... Military officials in the Philippines are big CRAP! I said it just like a shock jock would. With all their corruptions and throwing a monkey wrench in every procurement deals that come, I won't be surprised if the many arms dealer from other countries would not take us seriously next time. How can you go by and feed your children with your corrupt ways. Or maybe there's a conspiracy that some of these officers are on the chinese payroll, their true master! All the delays, the taxpayer money lost, and most of all the lost of good soldiers who die and suffer daily just for their amusement. I cannot find the exact most derogatory word to describe them. I know they exist (prove me wrong!) these people deserves hell. And I lost my patriotism because of them scumbags.

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  13. I'm voting for Grace Poe because if Roxas wins, the same cronies will likely stay in the DND

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    1. korek! and besides mahilig sa produktong made in china si roxas

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  14. The solution is to limit the participation of AFP/DND in the arms procurement process by only giving the list of arms items it requires to the COA and DBM agencies which will exclusively handle the procurement from foreign suppliers upon approval from the Supreme Court. My point is let the less likely corrupt government agencies be involved in the arms procurement process and out of the hands of the AFP/DND. The AFP/DND will just provide the list, the SC will decide on the winning suppliers, the COA will audit the cost and the DBM will allocate the budget.

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  15. Before you were against the Maestrale deal since you said that the PN is better off with new ones due to long term cost. This despite the fact that the Italians would be overhauling and repairing the ships to almost brand new state. Now you advocate getting second hand defense articles. What's changed? Were you wrong in your initial assessment?

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    1. Yes there were changes. 1st, MaxDefense got more info on the conditions of the ships. It was worse than I thought. But it can still be fixed and can be good for several years more. The biggest change is the situation. More than 2 years since MaxDefense agreed for the PN to acquire new ships, a decision is yet to be made on who wins the tender. That means the timeline for the ship's delivery also changed. So it means that from now until then there will still be no new frigate. Add to that the worsening condition of the PH's grip to its claims in the WPS and the sudden presence of massive artificial islands which were not present when I made my first analysis.

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    2. Yes there were changes. 1st, MaxDefense got more info on the conditions of the ships. It was worse than I thought. But it can still be fixed and can be good for several years more. The biggest change is the situation. More than 2 years since MaxDefense agreed for the PN to acquire new ships, a decision is yet to be made on who wins the tender. That means the timeline for the ship's delivery also changed. So it means that from now until then there will still be no new frigate. Add to that the worsening condition of the PH's grip to its claims in the WPS and the sudden presence of massive artificial islands which were not present when I made my first analysis.

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  16. Only the CUH acquisition has so far gained fruit of all the acquisition plans under RAFPMP RA 10349, as all 8 units of the Bell 412EP are in the country. But deliveries can't be considered complete until now because the PAF has not yet accepted all 8 units as of this writing. ~ Max, it gained fruit because it includes VIP choppers. If it's for something that can be used by politicians and cabinet officials they can make wonders in making it happen in the shortest amount of time Just goes to show the priorities of our government.

    ginoginoako

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  17. Sir Max, another great article although there are a point I would like to raise. Whatever the reasons (honest or shady) the DND for ultimately rejecting the Maestrales, I think the Philippine Navy dodged a bullet on this one. Even if we got two of these Italian frigates, I have my doubts on the current capabilities of the PN to maintain such a high tech ship. We would have wound up spending an enormous sum flying in experts from Italy for the repair & maintenance of the Maestrales. Also, no other country is actively pursuing getting these frigates AFAIK so this should be a warning sign. Sincerely, Basketball_Fan

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  18. Is that true that the American M-113's are being given but PH won't pay for the shipment of the IFV's? They're just sitting in the California desert waiting for a home.

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    1. Some updates: the fund for the shipping of the M113s were among those approved by Pnoy last July.

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  19. Patriotic is out in d context of d so called ganid at swapang sa pera... ang nakakalungkot dito halos lahat sa mga ito nkapuesto sa ating gobyerno. kawawang juan dela cruz...... walang liwanag na natatanaw....

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  20. off topic but hoping everybody in the world knows another side of communist Chinese and how worst they are than us...

    http://globalnation.inquirer.net/127343/thieves-mostly-chinese-strike-mid-air

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  21. Ewan ko Sir Max kung may mayroon pang good men sa DND. puro walang pagmamahal sa bayan. We lost a lot of opportunity sana to improved our military capability.....well sana nga meron pang good men sa DND...Sana nga......

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  22. Sir Max tanong ko lang may article ba kayo kung bakit hindi natuloy ang Italian package deal?

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    1. kasi nga nagbago ang isip ng administrasyong ni abnoy dahil nalaman nila na konti lang ang pagkakalayo ng presyo ng Bago at Segunda Manong Frigate kaso di naisip ng mga hukluban sa palasyo kung gaano pa hirap ang proseso at programa ng bagong frigate. Takot gumastos ang administrasyong ito kung totoosin dapat bigyan nila ng pagkilala ang nakaraang administrasyon. Taga sunod lang naman sila ng mga programang ito. Kaya ito tayo ngayon naka abang, nakabitin sa hangin, nakalambitin sa bayag ng mga magagaling na alispuris ni panot at puting dragon. Panahon ang kalaban ng pilipinas sa oras na tapos ang WPS base ng mga byeho na yan .. tapos ang Pilipinas.

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    2. Kilala na natin ang mga nakaraang admistrasyon at si Sir max na mismo nag point out na pinabayaan nila ang AFP ng term nila. Kung kunti lang ang diperinsya ng second hand sa brand new eh mas mabuti na ang kukunin mo eh ang brand new. Ganon lang ba ka simple yun na nahirapan sila sa proseso at programa ng bagong frigate at takot silang gumastos?.

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    3. Alam din ng administrasyon ni Aquino na tadtad si Arroyo ng coup attempt kaya iniwasan nya ang pangyayaring ito. Kapalit nito ay ang pag pondo ng mga proyektong matagal ng nasa modernisasyon ng AFP na talagang nasa batas at nararapat paglaanan ng pondo. Tungkolin bilang Presidente ng Pilipinas at bilang Commander in Chief na hanapan niya ng pondo ang modernisasyon. Nasa Kampanya nya yan at ipinangako nya sa mga sundalo.Natural lang tuparin nya ang mga sinabi nya. Di yun utang na loob natin. Huwag na nating bilogin ang mga utak natin kasi buwis natin ang pondo na yan di pera ni Aquino yan. Marapat lang na bigyan nya ang pondo ang modernisasyon dahil inayos naman ni Arroyo ang fiscal debt ng bansa at nasa batas na yan kaya nga nag increase ang tax.

      May punto ka na di hamak na mas okay ang brand new na frigate kung i kompara mo sa segonda mano pero kung ang kalaban mo naman ay oras parang di ko lubos maisip na ganito ang konsolasyon ng buong sambayanan. ito ba ay dapat isang kongkretong rason para sa sitwasyon natin sa WPS? Ngayon nakikita mo ba ang minimithing bagong Frigate nila? Hindi ba wala pagkalipas ng ilang taon na ba?4-5 taong? Wala pa rin diba nasa proseso pa rin ng pagpili. Kumuha pa sila ng Consultant pa para sa proyektong ito dahil aminado ang pamunuan ng PN at DND na wala silang karanasan sa proyektong ito. At hindi ito basta bastang simpleng proyekto dahil napakacomplikado ng proreso. Sa dami ng rekotitos ng programa sa pagbili ng bagong barko di agad nila mapag desisyonan ang exactong pondo nito (umangal pa nga ang mga kompanya)at mga exactong kagamitan na ilalagay at gagamitin (kaya nga naging ibang proyekto ang mga kagamitan para sa barko). Ganoon ka simple ang problema kung titingnan mo bilang sibilyan. Hindi ba? Pangalawang punto ko para nais mong mabatid, ilang taon na ba sa serbisyo si Goyo at Monching buhat ng malipat sa PN may nakita ka bang Air Search Radar at Missile na gusto ng pamunoan ng Navy? Dba wala pa rin. Dapat nga pinaglaanan ito ng pondo para naman habang inantay nila ang bagong barko makapaglayag sila ng maayos kaso nga wala ding nangyayari. Paano ka nga naman makagpatrolya ng maayos kung bulag at bingi ang barko mo habang nasa laot ka.

      Alam natin na parehong tao lang ang mga tumitingin sa proseso ng proyekto sa DND at iilan lang ang napalitan simula ng sa panunungkulan ni Gloria hanggang kay Pnoy.

      6/100 ang Score ni Aquino sa Modernization ng AFP na binigay ni Sir Max abay tama lang kasi nakaipit pa sa kamay ng Presidente ang mga malalaking programa. Dapat nya permahan ang mga mga programang yan di yung politika ang kapalit dito. Kung may bayag ang Commander in Chief malamang tinuloy nya ang SBMS program at pinigilan niya ang re alignment at ilipat ng 2018 ang procurement. Hindi ba nakakapagtataka kung bakit vest at helmet ang kapalit ng SBMS kung totoosin may mga delivery pang dapat dumating para dyan (1.emergency procurement dyan ng Zamboanga Siege at 2. Helmet at vest procurement na dapat ng matagal na sanag tapos noong 2013).

      Takot ba gumastos ang administrasyon o Wala ng pondo para sa mga proyekto dahil nagamit na ang buong 2015 budget sa ibang bagay kaya inaantay nila ang 2016 budget para maipasok nila ang mga malalaking proyekto.

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  23. Sa Balikatan palaging ipinagmamalaki ng mga heneral natin na kahit kulang daw sa gamit di raw nag papahuli ang mga pilipino sa galing at pinupuri raw ng mga kano. So, ayan magaling naman pala bat bibili pa ng gamit.

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  24. Philippines can't afford full military modernisation: Officials

    Read more at:
    http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/48512466.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

    If only we could get more oil resources to increase budget.

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  25. The state of the AFP & DND mirrors to what's happening to Philippine Basketball. Pathetic, corrupt officials, and team owners as well as key players who are unwilling to sacrifice for flag and country. No wonder we are still a 3rd world country. Very sad indeed.

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  26. The Present Administration is currently involved in too much press release when it comes to modernization when in fact and they personally knows that they are not walking their talk. Fool me once shame on you Fool me twice shame on me. They cant even approve the much needed upgrade program that this administration wanted to have, in short they have succeeded the previous administrations program with little revision (different name of project with same result). It is true that this administration has poured more funds than the previous leadership, the very blatant fact is that the Modernization Law calls for more funds and it is the current administrations task to look and provide the much needed funding.

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  27. it doesn't matter if pnoy has done more than the 3 previous administrations, base on the delays that is happening right now not only in the military aquisitions but also the delay in major infrustructure projects that he so proudly boast, he still fails to do most of his promises. i really just hope this 2 brand new frigate is going to be awarded this year or else his modernization program to me is a failure

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  28. sayang!!!! mas ok sana kung kinuha na ang great Italian Sale na yan. Full package na. Sana ma reconsider pag mag fail ang brand new frigate.

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  29. Walang pag-asang sumulong ang AFP Modernization sa kahit sinong presidenteng papalit kay Pnoy. Lahat ng mga kakandidatong maging presidente ay either pro-China o kulang-kulang sa pagiging nationalistic, patriotic at militaristic. US Statehood na lang ang pag-asa ng Pilipinas para mabawi ang Sabah sa Malaysia at Spratly Islands/Scarborough shoal sa China. Wala namang matapang at hindi corrupt na AFP General na may kakayahang maisulong ang AFP Modernization. Lahat sila ay sariling interest ang priority at kanya-kanyang bata ng mga politico na sunod-sunuran lang at walang sariling paninindigan. Kailangan natin ng isang AFP General na handang makipag gera laban sa Malaysia at China para mabawi ang Sabah, Spratly Islands at Scarborough Shoal. Sigurado ay uunahin niyang palakasin ang AFP bago sumabak sa gera.

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  30. Sir max..dapat kau nlang ang naging DNDSecretary.Siguradong angkop ang mga armas na ma acquire natin awala pang red tape.G2G IS THE BEST OPTION TO OBTAIN NA MINIMUM DEFENSE FOR OUR COUNTRY.MBUHAY KA SIR MAX.

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  31. Mabuhay ka sir Max.G2G deal is the best option para maiwasan ang rig bidding sa DND.At mtugunan ng tama ang pangangailangan ng ating Hukbong Sandataha.Mabuhay AFP.

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  32. The failure of upgrading the capabilities of Philippine defense under a very supportive President is caused by corrupt and US colonized officials in DND and AFP. They prioritized their own personal interests and the colonizer's interests to keep us Filipinos weak to control us.

    Stand up a new strong SRDP posture now

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  33. Alam niyo sir Max hindi sana nahalata ang DND/AFP kung na award na sana ang nanalo sa bidding ng 2 brand new frigates sa winner a year ago. Kasi lumalabas na mas pinili ng AFP/DND na iderail and Italy package offer na G2G negotiation kasi maliwanag na MASKIKITA ang mga TARANDADO taga AFP.DND kung Bidding nga naman.Mga walang hiya talaga sarap ipaputol ang ulo sa Abu.....

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  34. Hey guys im having problem accessing maxdefense & pdff facebook account are you also experiencing same problem?

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  35. Just vocing out ... Too much issues going on internally, bidding delays, no bidders ... Is the military asking for high end specifications for very low end price ? Have to be realistic. The government should agree first what they really want to focus on with regards to defense and move from there. Can't even finalize the frigates acquisition and would dare discuss future submarine plans ? Good plan for missle defense, then suddenly scratch it for internal defense instead. Also need to capitalize on what the US can help on. Philippines is getting ~50-60% of total FMF in East Asia and Pacific, with Indonesia only 2nd at ~20%. The US have tons of surplus military equipment that can be acquired, why not bet on those at least for an immediate minimal defense structure over the next few years while the modernization for new equipment is in progress, which is now easily taking a couple of years for bidding and decision plus a few more years for delivery. Example, instead of Hamilton-class cutters, why not get those Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates which a few are in retirement in 2015 and held for possible FMS, these are >10 yrs newer and far more capable.

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    Replies
    1. that's due to many incompetent officials in DND and Malacanang. they lack common sense.

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  36. To add on, if the Hamilton-class have lower operational cost, then at least do more upgrades, like missle capabilities or CIWS.

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  37. It's a pity! were looking for submarines when we cannot even secure the tanks frm the US which are just awaiting for our moves...By the way sir max are we just given this year only and afterwards the deal with these tanks goes puff??THAnk YOU

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    Replies
    1. Irs already settled and are bound to be in the PH. MID announced that some will be delivered by November this year.

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Philippine Navy Modernization Projects

Philippine Air Force Modernization Projects