By DR. JESUS P. ESTANISLAO
Manila Bulletin, Tuesday, September 20, 2010
Using the performance governance system (PGS), which calls for a balance of perspectives, one would ordinarily gloss over the issue about which of those perspectives are more important than the others. After all, under the PGS, what is important is that all key perspectives need to be duly taken into account.
In the case of the Philippine Navy (PN), however, one gets the distinct impression that the perspectives of personnel, organization, and resources have to be taken into account because of their bearing on capability. This is the perspective that matters deeply: After all, what the Navy can accomplish would depend critically upon its capability.
The PN has listed four priorities under the capability perspective. The first of these is “responsive naval support.” This has elicited the proposed initiative of pursuing a modernized PN logistics system. The timely arrival of resources is the proposed measure of success for this initiative. The targets for 2011, 2012, and 2013 are 80 percent, 85 percent, and 90 percent, respectively. For 2020, the target is 99 percent. The proposed measure shows how dependent this initiative is upon the availability of resources and upon when those resources are made available to the Navy. Delay can be damaging.
The second priority is “reliable naval facilities.” The Navy proposes two initiatives to pursue this priority. A high customer satisfaction on the use of naval facilities, as the first initiative, would have as its measure of success the increase in the average “customer satisfaction rating,” presumably on the part of PN personnel. The targets are: 75 percent for 2011, 80 percent for 2012, 85 percent for 2013, and finally 95 percent for 2020. The second initiative calls for a comprehensive PN real estate utilization program. The measure of success of this initiative is the average MDP completion rate of PN bases and stations. Starting from a low base in 2010, the Navy has set the following targets: 50 percent for 2011, 60 percent for 2012, 70 percent for 2013, and 100 percent for 2020.
Under the third priority of securing “up-to-date naval capability,” two initiatives have been put forward. The first is to establish a responsive self-reliance defense posture program, with the measure of success being the rating of equipment of OPREVAL. The targets start at 75 percent for 2011, 80 percent for 2012, and 85 percent for 2013. They end at 100 percent for 2020. The second initiative is full utilization of PN Defense Capability Assessment and Planning System. The measure of success is the percentage of capability proposal complied with (i.e. actual versus programmed), and this is targeted at 25 percent in 2011 (from the base of 20 percent in 2010). The target moves up to 40 percent in 2012, 60 percent in 2013, and finally 90 percent in 2020.
The fourth and final priority under the capability perspective is “optimal level of operational readiness.” Only one initiative is proposed, and it is to improve operational readiness program management. The critical measure of success of this initiative is the OPREVAL rating with the following targets: 60 percent in 2011, 65 percent in 2012, 70 percent in 2013, and 85 percent in 2020. The Navy is starting at a low base with respect to this measure, and the targets it has set for this measure indicate how difficult it is for the PN to push it up; even by 2020, it can put forward a target of only 85 percent.
One quick look at the performance scorecards the Navy has proposed under the capability perspective would impress upon anyone how critically important the indicated initiatives, measures, and targets are for success of the Navy Sail Plan. It is true that all performance scorecards have to be given due attention along with the necessary commitment, dogged perseverance, and resources. But it is the attention to the performance scorecards under the capability perspective which would ultimately determine whether the PN has succeeded with its Navy Sail Plan.
Friday, September 24, 2010
BCDA extends deadline for Bonifacio South
By Ben Arnold O. De Vera
The Manila Times, Tuesday, 21 September 2010
State-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) said it gave prospective bidders for the Fort Bonifacio property it is privatizing another month to prepare their elibility documents.
In a text message on Monday, Aileen Zosa, BCDA executive vice president and spokesperson, said that bidders for the 33.1-hectare Bonifacio South property can submit their eligibility documents until October 20.
The official said the agency granted the extension because bidders had asked for an extension.
Real estate giants Ayala Land Inc., Filinvest Land Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Leechiu, Megaworld Corp.,Robinsons Land Corp. and Rockwell Land Corp. have expressed interest to challenge SM Land Inc.’s bid to develop the Bonifacio South lot covering the Philippine Army’s Army Support Command (ASCOM) and Special Services Unit (SSU), as well as the Philippine Navy’s Bonifacio Naval Station (BNS) and Philippine Marine Corps. (PMC).
SM Land had submitted to BCDA an unsolicited proposal to develop Bonifacio South for a minimum investment commitment of P20 billion.
The company’s bid offers an upfront cash amounting P2 billion upon signing the joint venture (JV) contract and also secured annual revenues of P25.9 billion, for a present value of P36,900 per square meter, for 20 years.
SM Land’s proposal will be subjected to a Swiss challenge, under Annex C of the National Economic and Development Authority’s JV Guidelines.
Under the Bonifacio South master plan, the BNS/PMC/ASCOM/SSU lots would be developed into a medium- to high-density residential and mixed-use complex, with a maximum allowable gross floor area of 1.355 million square meters.
The Manila Times, Tuesday, 21 September 2010
State-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) said it gave prospective bidders for the Fort Bonifacio property it is privatizing another month to prepare their elibility documents.
In a text message on Monday, Aileen Zosa, BCDA executive vice president and spokesperson, said that bidders for the 33.1-hectare Bonifacio South property can submit their eligibility documents until October 20.
The official said the agency granted the extension because bidders had asked for an extension.
Real estate giants Ayala Land Inc., Filinvest Land Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Leechiu, Megaworld Corp.,Robinsons Land Corp. and Rockwell Land Corp. have expressed interest to challenge SM Land Inc.’s bid to develop the Bonifacio South lot covering the Philippine Army’s Army Support Command (ASCOM) and Special Services Unit (SSU), as well as the Philippine Navy’s Bonifacio Naval Station (BNS) and Philippine Marine Corps. (PMC).
SM Land had submitted to BCDA an unsolicited proposal to develop Bonifacio South for a minimum investment commitment of P20 billion.
The company’s bid offers an upfront cash amounting P2 billion upon signing the joint venture (JV) contract and also secured annual revenues of P25.9 billion, for a present value of P36,900 per square meter, for 20 years.
SM Land’s proposal will be subjected to a Swiss challenge, under Annex C of the National Economic and Development Authority’s JV Guidelines.
Under the Bonifacio South master plan, the BNS/PMC/ASCOM/SSU lots would be developed into a medium- to high-density residential and mixed-use complex, with a maximum allowable gross floor area of 1.355 million square meters.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
The Navy’s Resources
By DR. JESUS P. ESTANISLAO
Saturday, September 17, 2010
As a unit of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Navy (PN) operates on the basis of budgetary allocations that the national government provides and releases to it. This amount has always been subject to severe constraints: the Navy is always called upon to do so much on the basis of so little.
There is little the Navy can do about the budgetary allocations the General Appropriations Act provides for the AFP in general and for the PN in particular.
Thus, under the priority of “balanced financial programs,” one of two priorities listed under the resources perspective, the PN puts forward this initiative, to strengthen PN fiscal administration. The first measure of success under this initiative is keep at 100% the rate of obligation, i.e., ensure that the entire budgeted amount and released to the PN is duly and properly obligated and deployed. The other measure of success is to keep at zero Commission on Audit (COA) exceptions: the Navy plays by CoA rules and regulations, and intends to stay well within their ambit.
There is a limit, however, to what can be done under such stringent fiscal straits. Despite the inventiveness and creativity of PN personnel, inevitably budgetary tightness has long-term consequences. “Having to make do with so little” imposes severe constraints on the modernization of the fleet and the needed capital and other requirements of a modern Navy serving such a huge maritime area that the Philippines is blessed with. The President himself in his first State-of-the-Nation Address in July, 2010, specifically referred to the “MacArthur vintage” of some of our Navy ships, which miraculously are being made to run and operate in large part due to the maintenance expertise of PN personnel.
It is against this background that the second priority under this perspective should be understood. That priority is to secure “adequate financial resources” for the Navy Sail Plan. This priority is in line with the AFP modernization program, which calls for a sustainable non-traditional resource generating system for the PN. This means looking for other sources of funds that the Navy can use for its fleet modernization as well as its capital and other requirements. The President mentioned the Navy as a specific case under his proposed public-private partnership. Under such a partnership, with Navy land and other assets properly and judiciously deployed, the PN should start building a trust fund in 2011.
The initial amount targeted for 2011 is small: Only half a billion pesos. This amount should rise each year by half a billion pesos until 2013. The target for 2020 is modest at only five billion pesos: It is from the earnings of this fund that the Navy should be able to find the much needed supplement to the budgetary allocation it gets through the annual General Appropriations Act.
In fact, more broadly, through public-private partnership, the PN can have access to extra-budgetary resources that can be made available for its programs. The key lies in properly packaging the programs that can be funded under PPP arrangements; this would entail due observance of all relevant laws and proper practices of transparent, accountable governance that the President has called for.
The PN has already taken various steps in the direction of building a multi-sector governance coalition that would assist it in raising the standards of governance that it practices. It is also beginning to find out that with the commitment of such a coalition whose membership is drawn from various sectors of the Philippine community, it has many doors leading to additional financial resources it can tap for the critical priorities it included in its Sail Plan.
Saturday, September 17, 2010
As a unit of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Navy (PN) operates on the basis of budgetary allocations that the national government provides and releases to it. This amount has always been subject to severe constraints: the Navy is always called upon to do so much on the basis of so little.
There is little the Navy can do about the budgetary allocations the General Appropriations Act provides for the AFP in general and for the PN in particular.
Thus, under the priority of “balanced financial programs,” one of two priorities listed under the resources perspective, the PN puts forward this initiative, to strengthen PN fiscal administration. The first measure of success under this initiative is keep at 100% the rate of obligation, i.e., ensure that the entire budgeted amount and released to the PN is duly and properly obligated and deployed. The other measure of success is to keep at zero Commission on Audit (COA) exceptions: the Navy plays by CoA rules and regulations, and intends to stay well within their ambit.
There is a limit, however, to what can be done under such stringent fiscal straits. Despite the inventiveness and creativity of PN personnel, inevitably budgetary tightness has long-term consequences. “Having to make do with so little” imposes severe constraints on the modernization of the fleet and the needed capital and other requirements of a modern Navy serving such a huge maritime area that the Philippines is blessed with. The President himself in his first State-of-the-Nation Address in July, 2010, specifically referred to the “MacArthur vintage” of some of our Navy ships, which miraculously are being made to run and operate in large part due to the maintenance expertise of PN personnel.
It is against this background that the second priority under this perspective should be understood. That priority is to secure “adequate financial resources” for the Navy Sail Plan. This priority is in line with the AFP modernization program, which calls for a sustainable non-traditional resource generating system for the PN. This means looking for other sources of funds that the Navy can use for its fleet modernization as well as its capital and other requirements. The President mentioned the Navy as a specific case under his proposed public-private partnership. Under such a partnership, with Navy land and other assets properly and judiciously deployed, the PN should start building a trust fund in 2011.
The initial amount targeted for 2011 is small: Only half a billion pesos. This amount should rise each year by half a billion pesos until 2013. The target for 2020 is modest at only five billion pesos: It is from the earnings of this fund that the Navy should be able to find the much needed supplement to the budgetary allocation it gets through the annual General Appropriations Act.
In fact, more broadly, through public-private partnership, the PN can have access to extra-budgetary resources that can be made available for its programs. The key lies in properly packaging the programs that can be funded under PPP arrangements; this would entail due observance of all relevant laws and proper practices of transparent, accountable governance that the President has called for.
The PN has already taken various steps in the direction of building a multi-sector governance coalition that would assist it in raising the standards of governance that it practices. It is also beginning to find out that with the commitment of such a coalition whose membership is drawn from various sectors of the Philippine community, it has many doors leading to additional financial resources it can tap for the critical priorities it included in its Sail Plan.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Marines Get New Combat Gadgets
By PNA
Manila Bulletin, Friday, September 16, 2010
The fighting capability of the troops from the Philippine Marines Corp (PMC) will be further enhanced with the acquisition of new gadgets, a top military official disclosed Thursday.
Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mohammad Dolorfino, Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) commander, said the PMC recently acquired nightfighting system gadgets.
Most if not all of the battalions of the PMC’s three brigades are deployed within the area of jurisdiction of the Wesmincom that stretches from Tawi-Tawi up to Misamis Occidental.
Dolorfino said the night-fighting system gadgets are a combination of night-vision goggle and target system that are shock- and water-proof.
“It will give us complete nightfighting capability and accuracy,” he said.
Dolorfino said previously the troops could only see their enemy during night time using their nightvision goggles. But there is no target accuracy that the newly-acquired gadgets provide, he said.
He said the PMC is set to train personnel on the use of the newly-acquired gadgets for their eventual use in the fight against bandits belonging to the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).
“Definitely, marami ang matutumba na ASG (many ASG members will fall),” he said.
Dolorfino’s command is running after at least 300 ASG bandits, including Jemaah Islamiyah militant Marwan, whose real name is Zulkifli bin Hir, and reportedly hiding in the province of Sulu.
Marwan is a Malaysian national and an engineer by profession.
The United States government is offering a reward of up to $ 5 million for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Marwan, a terrorist believed to be involved in multiple deadly bomb attacks in the Philippines.
Of the remaining 300 Abu Sayyaf bandits, 200 of them are hiding in the province of Sulu while the 100 are in the province of Basilan, Dolorfino said.
Manila Bulletin, Friday, September 16, 2010
The fighting capability of the troops from the Philippine Marines Corp (PMC) will be further enhanced with the acquisition of new gadgets, a top military official disclosed Thursday.
Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mohammad Dolorfino, Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) commander, said the PMC recently acquired nightfighting system gadgets.
Most if not all of the battalions of the PMC’s three brigades are deployed within the area of jurisdiction of the Wesmincom that stretches from Tawi-Tawi up to Misamis Occidental.
Dolorfino said the night-fighting system gadgets are a combination of night-vision goggle and target system that are shock- and water-proof.
“It will give us complete nightfighting capability and accuracy,” he said.
Dolorfino said previously the troops could only see their enemy during night time using their nightvision goggles. But there is no target accuracy that the newly-acquired gadgets provide, he said.
He said the PMC is set to train personnel on the use of the newly-acquired gadgets for their eventual use in the fight against bandits belonging to the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).
“Definitely, marami ang matutumba na ASG (many ASG members will fall),” he said.
Dolorfino’s command is running after at least 300 ASG bandits, including Jemaah Islamiyah militant Marwan, whose real name is Zulkifli bin Hir, and reportedly hiding in the province of Sulu.
Marwan is a Malaysian national and an engineer by profession.
The United States government is offering a reward of up to $ 5 million for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Marwan, a terrorist believed to be involved in multiple deadly bomb attacks in the Philippines.
Of the remaining 300 Abu Sayyaf bandits, 200 of them are hiding in the province of Sulu while the 100 are in the province of Basilan, Dolorfino said.
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