‘PH to refocus WPS efforts’ Centino: Address geopolitical issues in troubled waters

By Francisco Tuyay and Vince Lopez

OUTGOING Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Andres Centino said Thursday his appointment as Presidential Adviser on the West Philippine Sea was brought by the need to refocus government efforts and address pressing concerns in the volatile waterway.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro agreed, telling reporters yesterday that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s appointment of Centino “underscores the importance of the WPS and the dynamic of the events which occur there on a daily basis.”

This also reflects the need of the President to have someone focus on the sea lane as a “presidential adviser with Cabinet stature,” Teodoro added.

This developed as the government said it is keeping a close eye on Taiwan, the Philippines’ northern neighbor, amid the possibility of an invasion from China.

“That is a thing that we continue to monitor daily and hopefully the engagements bilaterally between the United States and China lead to the diffusion of tensions in that territory,” said Teodoro.

The country’s defense sector also supports fully the appointment of Philippine Army (PA) commander Lt. Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. as the next AFP chief of staff, replacing Centino.

Teodoro said this appointment, and the AFP turnover ceremony scheduled today highlight the stability of succession in the military.

MILLIONS suffered through intense heat Wednesday as fires raged, health worries mounted and the world appeared headed for its hottest month of July on record.

As temperature records tumbled on three continents, experts pointed the finger at climate change driven by the burning of fossil fuels, saying global warming had a key role in