INCOMING chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Lt. Gen. Emmanuel Bautista vowed on Wednesday to bring down the insurgency problem to a negligible level before the end of his tour of duty or before the Aquino administration vows out on 2016.

“That is our goal for the NPA [New People’s Army] to be irrelevant, for the armed struggle to be ended, to render the armed struggle irrelevant,” he said. “By the end of my term, substantially, I’ m not saying zero, it can never approach zero.”

Bautista explained that as Armed Forces chief he would be in better position to implement the Internal Peace and Security Plan (IPSP) Bayanihan, the government new anti-insurgency strategy, than when he was the commanding general of the Philippine Army.

“I would be in a better position to influence the implementation of Bayanihan as chief of staff because I would be the operational commander and chief of staff unlike ng CGPA [commanding general Philipine Army] where I am somewhat limited because the CGPA is only a force provider. But now I will have a direct hand in the implementation of Bayanihan,” he said

He pointed out that the timeframe of Bayanihan is up to 2016 but stressed that by this year there must be substantial accomplishments on its target achievements.

Among those already accomplished in line with the Bayanihan principle, Bautista further said, was the signing of the framework agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The IPSP-Bayanihan is the AFP’s new anti-insurgency campaign strategy , hoping that it will be the right formula that will end the decades-old communist insurgency.

Under the IPSP, the desired result is to reduce the capabilities of internal armed threats to a level that they can no longer threaten the stability of the state and civil authorities can ensure the safety and well-being of the Filipino people.

The strategy focuses on winning the peace and not just defeating the enemy, anchored on the whole-of-nation approach and people-centered security/human security approach.

The whole-of-nation approach serves as the Armed Forces’s guide in implementing the IPSP, while the people-centered approach reflects the paradigm shift that the AFP pursues in said plan

Meanwhile, the military leadership, through spokesman Col. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr., hailed the appointment of Bautista as the 44th chief of staff of the AFP, confident that he would be able to continue the ongoing military programs, initiatives and reforms in line with the goals of the IPSP Bayanihan and the accomplishment of its constitutional mandate.

“Being the chief architect of IPSP Bayanihan and now at the helm of the AFP, we are highly optimistic that he would be able to lead and enable the organization ot make vital progress and significant development which will help the organization and its partner agencies and stakeholders to achieve the shard goals of a just and last peace for our country,” Burgos said.

Bautista was then the AFP deputy chief of staff for operations, or J3 in 2010 when he spearheaded the crafting of the IPSP Bayanihan in consultation with all stakeholders.

The 125-strong AFP was also optimistic that under Bautista’s leadership, the ongoing military modernization and capability upgrade will further move forward to achieve a minimum credible defense posture.

Gen. Jessie Dellosa, outgoing chief of staff, will officially step down on Monday when he reaches his 56th birthday.

However, the change of command ceremony will be held Thurday to accommodate the schedule of President Benigno Aquino 3rd, who will preside the military proceedings.

Burgos said that the whole ceremony, which include a testimonial review for Dellosa, would be made simple by reducing to half the number of participants in the parade so as to reduce and allow more troops to devote their time in their discharge of duties.