RESIGNED Defense senior undersecretary and officer-in-charge Gen. (ret.) Jose Faustino Jr. on Tuesday admitted that he decided to step down from his post after learning of the reappointment of Gen. Andres Centino as the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

'With the utmost respect, I submitted my irrevocable letter of resignation to the President, His Excellency Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., on Friday, January 6, 2023, after learning only from news and social media reports that an oath of office of the new Chief of Staff, AFP had taken place at Malacañang,' he said in his statement sent to reporters.