Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales expressed confidence Sunday that the armed forces will come out “clean and more loved and respected by the people” for the role they will play in the coming May elections as they have been doing so in Maguindanao.

“Beyond helping the Commission on Elections (Comelec) ensure that the 2010 elections would be credible and reflective of the true will of our people, we want to show that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is the true guardian of our democracy,” Gonzales said.

In so saying, the defense chief reaffirmed his full trust in the professionalism of the military and reiterated his full support for a new Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between the Department of National Defense (DND), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the poll body.

“We have decided to put the AFP at the full disposal of the Comelec because we want the poll body to accomplish its job in 2010,” Gonzales said, pointing out that the poll body had always employed the AFP in the past, particularly in election hot spots.

Gonzales said the decision in 2007 to limit the role of the military in electoral exercises because of the 2004 controversy “strengthened rather than erased doubts” on the integrity and non-partisanship of the military. “We want to correct that,” he added.

The secretary also emphasized that the role of the AFP in elections will be defined by the poll body. “It will really be up to the Comelec.
Our armed forces will follow the orders of the poll body,” Gonzales said.

The defense chief, however, clarified that the new MoA is still being drafted and “there are no details yet.”

Gonzales said the AFP would probably have a major role only in known election hot spots where the police would need the military’s support.

The secretary noted that for the longest time, the communists and their allies have been casting doubts on the integrity and professionalism of the military. “We will prove them wrong in May,” Gonzales said.

At the same time, Gonzales reiterated the need to confiscate loose firearms and dismantle private armed groups to check their impact on elections, adding this was the only way the nation could give meaning to the deaths of those slaughtered in Maguindanao.

“If we become successful in this campaign, then the victims of the Maguindanao massacre will have not have died in vain.”

Meanwhile, Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner, Jr., AFP spokesman, said a coordinating conference between the Comelec, AFP, and the Philippine National Police (PNP) will be held at Camp Crame Thursday to discuss the rules and regulations for the implementation of Comelec Resolution No. 8714.