ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider AFP signals readiness for post-2027 modernization as law nears expiry

AFP signals readiness for post-2027 modernization as law nears expiry

Published Jan 14, 2026 02:05 pm
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Deputy Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Rommel Roldan (Still photo from PCO press briefing via RTVM livestream)
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Deputy Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Rommel Roldan (Still photo from PCO press briefing via RTVM livestream)
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Wednesday, Jan. 14, that it is prepared to support the crafting of a new modernization law as the current AFP Modernization Act is set to expire in 2027 amid rising regional security concerns and renewed focus on national sovereignty.
AFP Deputy Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Roldan said the military is already providing technical advice to the Department of National Defense (DND) and other branches of government to ensure the continuity of the military’s modernization through the needed legislation.
“The Armed Forces of the Philippines is aware that the current law covering the AFP Modernization Program is nearing its end. However, this will undergo a process,” Roldan said.
“On the part of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, we are ready. We provide technical advice to the Department of National Defense and other executive and legislative agencies because this requires a law,” he added.
Earlier, House Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan urged Congress to pass a new AFP modernization law before the current one nears its expiry to ensure continuity in military upgrades.
The 15-year Revised AFP Modernization Program was enacted in 2012 and divided into three phases or “horizons”. The first phase was implemented from 2013 to 2017, the second was from 2018 to 2022, and the third and final horizon is from 2023 to 2028.
In January 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. overhauled the third horizon into a 10-year defense spending dubbed as “Re-horizon 3” with a costing of P2 trillion.
Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has opposed the extension of the existing AFP Modernization Law since he argued that the current framework is no longer adequate for today’s security environment.
The AFP Modernization Law is set to expire in 2027.
Proposals
Meanwhile, Roldan assured that the military has proposals on hand for the next phase of modernization which are meant to improve and refine future capability development.
“Rest assured, the Armed Forces is always ready with our proposals for whatever changes or improvements may be made to the next AFP Modernization Program,” he said.
Asked whether the AFP has done enough to convince Congress to fast-track a new modernization law given mounting regional threats, Roldan pointed to the budget allocations for 2026.
“Given what is happening now, I believe it is sufficient. You can see that in 2026, there is P40 billion allocated for the AFP Modernization Program. On top of that is P50 billion in unprogrammed funds for modernization,” he said.
He added that legislative action already reflects support for defense upgrades.
However, the AFP has yet to release a public roadmap or timeline for the next modernization law. Roldan said the military is still reviewing the current program before finalizing new proposals.
“At this time, we are still continuing the review of the current modernization. We are looking at what has been implemented. From there, we will examine the security landscape and the changes since the current AFP Modernization Program was drafted and approved,” he noted.
He said the next step will be identifying new and existing capabilities needed by the military.
“From there, we will revise the programs and determine what capabilities or new capabilities the Armed Forces need to develop to continue providing proper security to our people,” Roldan stated.

Related Tags

AFP modernization law military modernization program
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.