Philippines taps combat veteran to lead armed forces amid regional tensions
Lieutenant General Antonio G. Nafarrete’s career has been closely tied to the restive Mindanao region, which is preparing for polls
The choice points to continuity in security policy and puts the Armed Forces of the Philippines under an officer whose career has been closely tied to Mindanao, which is preparing for its first parliamentary election in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) on September 14.
Nafarrete replaces General Romeo Brawner Jnr, whose three-year term as armed forces chief ended on Tuesday.
Veteran defence and security analyst Manuel Mogato told This Week in Asia that Nafarrete’s 36 years of combat experience against Muslim rebels, Islamists and the communist New People’s Army might have strengthened his case for the top military post.
Nafarrete, 57, had been viewed as a contender alongside his Philippine Military Academy Class of 1990 batchmate, air force chief Lieutenant General Arthur M. Cordura.
Mogato said the Bangsamoro election was “critical” for the future of peace in the Muslim south.