Senator JV Ejercito vowed his full support in securing sufficient and sustained funding for the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) modernization program amid the tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

During the Senate hearing on the proposed budget of the Department of National Defense and its attached agencies on Tuesday, 7 October, Ejercito urged the government to provide sustainable funding for the program to strengthen the country’s defense posture.

“For years, the AFP modernization has been victimized by budget cuts. But in the Senate, we have been consistent in supplementing and adding budget for the AFP modernization in the past years, we will boost it,” Ejercito said.

“My question, out of 188 revised AFP modernization projects, only 59 were completed? Is this really all there is to it?,” he added.

Ejercito also pointed out that consistent underfunding has delayed the country’s transition to a credible defense capability.

"If it had been allocated to the modernization program, we would have caught up. We would have been in Horizon 3 by now," he added.

Ejercito stressed that without institutional reforms, a stable funding mechanism, and a more integrated defense-industrial strategy, the AFP will continue to fall short of its modernization goals even as security challenges grow more complex in the region.

He also asked defense officials to present concrete measures to address the funding gap and ensure the timely and effective implementation of the program.

Ejercito reiterated his commitment to support legislative and budgetary measures that will strengthen the Armed Forces and safeguard the country’s sovereignty.