Senator Imee Marcos is pushing for the revival of a self-reliant defence program as counterbalance to foreign military dependence.
This came after Marcos consulted with the Western Mindanao Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in Zamboanga Sibugay over the weekend in a bid to revive a neglected government program that enabled the country’s self-reliance in national defense.
The initiative of the chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee comes as the Philippine government prepares four new sites for U.S. military access in the country and a proposed agreement for stronger defense cooperation with Japan.
Marcos said the Self-Reliant Defense Posture (SRDP) program initiated in 1974 by her father, the late President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr., must be revived to “scale down our dependence on foreign goodwill in the sticky web of geopolitics.”
“Thailand now customizes rifles that are slimmer and lighter for its soldiers, while Vietnam can now manufacture anti-surface warfare missiles. How far have we gone?” she asked.
“In the 70’s to early 80's, our SRDP was already producing M-16 rifles under license, steel helmets, hand grenades and other ammunition, handheld radios, Jiffy jeeps. It also created jobs and minimized foreign spending,” she recalled.
Marcos explained that Filipino manufacturers used local materials besides the imported parts from which technological know-how was gained, with the National Science Development Board supporting research and development.
“There’s no question about Filipino capability, but we must revive the SRDP now,” she emphasized.