Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff, Gen. Delfin Bangit, is all set to relinquish his post and bow out of the military service on Tues, more than a year ahead of his mandatory retirement date.

In line with his scheduled early retirement, the Philippine Army will render a testimonial review in honor of the outgoing AFP Chief of Staff at 3 p.m. this Monday at the Hunters ROTC Guerilla Parade Ground, Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig.

Lt. Col. Arnuflo Burgos, Jr., AFP spokesman, said Bangit’s visit to the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio will be the last leg of the series of his farewell visits to the different major service units of the armed forces which started last week.

It will be recalled that Bangit has chosen June 22 to be the date of his early retirement from the military. The AFP Chief earlier announced that he has chosen to hang his uniform way ahead of his original retirement date on July 2011 “for the good of the AFP.”

Bangit came to his decision after President-elect Benigno Aquino III publicly announced that he will not keep the General to be the AFP Chief of Staff when he assumes the presidency on June 30.

Bangit's tenure as head of the military institution has been in the center of controversy even before he was formally chosen by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to take over the post from Gen. Victor Ibrado who retired in March.

The controversy that has been hounding Bangit can be traced primarily to his perceived closeness to President Arroyo, who is an adopted honorary member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Makatarungan Class 1978 to which he belongs.

Bangit also served as head of Arroyo’s Presidential Security Group (PSG).

Prior to the historical May 10 elections, rumors accusing Bangit of taking part in an alleged plot to rig the polls were also widely circulated.

The General, however, managed to successfully disprove the allegations when the military came out clean after the May polls, which is said to be the most peaceful in the country’s political history.

Soldiers even earned accolades for being non-partisan during the past elections, where some members of the Marines were also reported to have turned down bribe money from representatives of some unscrupulous local politicians.

Bangit also visited the Navy and Air Force, where a testimonial parade and review were also held in honor of the outgoing AFP Chief Thursday last week.

During his farewell visits to the different AFP units, Bangit personally thanked the soldiers especially for heeding his call to remain non-partisan and ensure the success of the May elections.