Brawner: Repeat of 1987 coup unlikely in today’s ‘unified, professional’ military

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner Jr. expressed strong confidence that a repeat of the 1987 military coup—or any form of military adventurism—is no longer possible under the current structure and culture of the AFP.

In a recent forum with foreign media, Brawner assured the public that today’s armed forces are “more unified, professional, and accountable,” significantly reducing the likelihood of internal divisions that once led to soldier-versus-soldier confrontations during the country’s turbulent political history.

“The reason why I’m not really worried about that kind of thing happening again—an incident where you have a soldier fighting against a soldier—is because we have already unified the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” Brawner said, when asked how the AFP is working to prevent a repeat of the 1987 coup and break the cycle of military unrest.

“We made sure we understand our role, and we are very professional about it,” he added. 

Brawner attributed the transformation to the AFP’s internal reforms, including the implementation of a Transformation Roadmap designed to instill discipline, professionalism, and purpose across all ranks.

“So by doing so, we eliminate already military adventurism, even with our young officers,” he pointed out. 

“With that transformation roadmap, for instance, we set goals for the organization to achieve, for the units, the offices, subordinate offices, and for the individual,” he continued. 

As part of these reforms, Brawner said the AFP now uses an individual scorecard system where each soldier sets both personal and professional goals. 

Commanders regularly evaluate performance, promoting accountability and individual growth.

“In the same manner, we also have an external group called the Multi-Sector Governance Council or the Multi-Sector Advisory Board, who are our transparency partners,” he added.

“They look into how we are doing things within the Armed Forces of the Philippines. So there is that accountability….We didn't have that kind of system before,” Brawner continued. 

He then emphasized that the AFP is committed to remaining a professional and apolitical institution, loyal to the Constitution and the Filipino people.

“Now, we know whom we are serving, and it’s very clear—down to the last soldier,” Brawner said.