Misreading the military mindset

IT did not take longer than 42 days after I wrote about the rumored replacement of Lt. Gen. Bartolome Vicente Bacarro as Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff that the changing of the guard came to pass. There were other names that were then persistently floating as his successor but not one of them was that of Gen. Andres Centino. It was probably because it was inconceivable at the time that after Bacarro took over from Centino when the controversial Republic Act 11709 was in effect, the once successor will become the predecessor of his former predecessor. And if the last sentence made you read the statement again to make sure that you got it right and that it was written correctly, it is because that is exactly how the turn of events has become — dizzying and confusing. The speed was head-spinning and the message, confounding.

After several weeks that the rumors of his replacement as military chief seem to have simmered down, I still surmise that Bacarro must be performing his tasks in the manner he best could. He must have gotten used to working every day as if it were his last in his post, aware that the sword of Damocles hanging over his head would one day fall. And it did — on the day he least expected. And like the biblical thief in the night — in a manner he may not have imagined. But unlike his heroic stance in proving his gallantry and mettle in combat back in January 1991 in Maconacon, Isabela that won for him the much-coveted Medal of Valor, he gave up this battle without a fight. But giving up this time, without any resistance at all, made him no coward; it only elevated him to the pedestal of how professional soldiers and full-blooded warriors should be. Knowing when to fight for the sake of country and people, and when to surrender for the good of the organization. And like a proverbial soldier, he did not die; he only faded away. Silently.