DND 76th Anniversary Issue 2015 - Department of National Defense

PHILIPPINE DEFENSE NEWSLETTER
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SEPTEMBER - DECEMBER 2014
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PHILIPPINE
DEFENSE DEFENSE
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PHILIPPINE
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SEPTEMBER
- DECEMBER 2014
76TH ANNIVERSARY
ISSUE 2015
PHILIPPINE
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PHILIPPINE
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EDITORIAL
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Change vis-à-vis continuity
Miriam Albao
This is a special issue of the Philippine Defense Newsletter (PDN) to commemorate
the founding anniversary of the Department of National Defense, which celebrates its
76th year. In this issue we also begin to take stock of the accomplishments of Secretary
Voltaire Gazmin, who celebrated the DND’s founding anniversary as national defense
chief for the last time. Because in a few months, after the 2016 national elections, the
helm of the Department would have been turned over to the next administration.
With the guidance of the President, Secretary Gazmin’s efforts for the past six (6)
years resulted in the improvement of DND’s system of management. His term saw the
implementation of institutional reforms and the establishment of a solid foundation for
the modernization of the country’s armed forces. Under his watch, the department has
also embarked on a defense transformation that traverses a carefully planned roadmap
towards becoming a credible defense organization.
Now that change in leadership is inevitable, the continuity of the programs that
have already taken off and those that are already smooth sailing, becomes imperative.
The Philippine Defense Transformation Roadmap that has been laid out has to see its
full fruition.
The PDN is also on the fringe of change. This issue is now actually a collaborative
work between outgoing Editor-in-Chief (EIC), yours truly, Miriam G. Albao and incoming
EIC, Jude Morte. The coming issues will then be taken over by the new EIC.
An adieu is not necessary though, it is time to take a bow to be able
to take on new roles and challenges in the department. The passion for
service continues in many other ways, but it has to be said that it is truly
NEWSLETTER
an honor and a privilege to have served the DND and the country with the
Public Affairs Service (PAS )
might of the pen.
Department of National Defense
PAS Building, Natividad Avenue
Camp General Emilio Aguinaldo, Quezon City 1110
Tel: (+632) 982-5679 Fax: (+632) 911-7113
Email: [email protected]
Setting up shop
The first op-ed column of any wordsmith is always a challenge.
After all, it signals the writer’s beginning of setting up shop, and trying
to establish rapport with readers.
It also signals this writer’s transition from private sector reporter to
Department of National Defense word (and occasionally photo) monkey.
Granted, there are going to be some changes in approach and thinking, but
the effort and output needed are the same.
It also helps that the office wherein this
writer is involved is the public face of the
Department of National Defense (DND). Meaning,
it involves national security matters, and helping
the DND out in whatever way possible helps
everybody know what the agency does.
That means incorporating some changes
into the Philippine Defense Newsletter (PDN),
including This Issue’s Featured Asset (TIFA, a
regular feature in PDN depicting a particular
Armed Forces of the Philippines’ resource), story
angles, and even prize-winning photos.
We at the DND-Public Affairs Service enjoy
this iteration of the Philippine Defense Newsletter.
Jude Morte
Dir. Paul Peter R.G. Galvez, MD,MNSA
Dir. Arsenio R. Andolong, MNSA
ADVISERS
Jude P. Morte
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Marina M. Agustin
Managing Editor
Nelson L. Gallarde
Finance
Media Relations
Ruferick
C. Somera
Renato C. Alba
Associate Editor
Prime S. Berunia
Noriza S. Atienza
News Editor
Jasmin Michelle L. Añana
Layout Artist
Photographers
Anthon A. Cayaco
Carmelita L. Briones
Research
Sgt Isidro R Areja
Administrative Services
Contributors
Col Noel J Detoyato (AFP)
Eva B. De los Santos (DND)
Dianne M. Gammad (DND)
Hiyasmin O. Karunungan (GA)
Chester Cabalza (NDCP)
Romina R. Marasigan (OCD)
Ma. Juanita S. Fajardo-Rivera (PVAO)
Support Services
Gloria A. Bantaotao
Shella D. Sonogan
SSgt Anthony B Cadiz
Assistance & Support by
Public Affairs Offices of
AFP-PAO
OJ7
CRS-AFP
Philippine Army
Philippine Navy/Philippine Marine Corps
Philippine Air Force
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Navy nails it!
Serviceman 2/SN2 Ariel B. Francisco
of the Philippine Navy topped the recently
concluded Department of National
Defense (DND) 76th anniversary photo
contest.
His entry stood out from the 30-odd
participants, and best depicted the
“Kagawaran ng Tanggulang Pambansa,
Kaagapay ng Sambayanan Tungo Sa Isang
Matatag, Maunlad at Mapayapang
Kinabukasan (Department of National
Defense, side by side with the country
towards a solid, progressive and peaceful
tomorrow)” theme.
The photo depicted the Philippine
Marines rapidly disembarking a M-PAC
(multiple purpose attack craft) during a
training exercise in south Luzon. “With
the winning shot, I was supposed to cover
that two-day activity as part of the PAONavy [Public Affairs Office-Philippine
Navy]. It was a September 2015 10 a.m.
amphibious exercise near the Gen.
Gregorio Lim Marine base in Ternate
(Cavite), and we at the PAO-Navy went
ahead to get good image angles. When the
Marines rapidly went offshore with the
photographed M-PAC, that presented me
with an instance to get shots...I took great
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pains to avoid the camera and the lens getting wet (or allow sand to enter
either periphery), given the circumstances,” recalled Francisco.
The win validated Francisco’s journey from shutterbug novice to skilled
lensman. “When I first joined the PAO-Navy five years ago, I didn’t have any
photography skills. I learned them from joining PAO-Navy photography
seminars in 2012 (theories and practical sessions, with the cameras provided
by the lecturers) – and thus stoked my interest in the field... Those PAO-Navy
photography seminars I attended taught me the basics, what I should and
shouldn’t do, and gave me (through classroom and on-hand learning)
opportunities to hone my craft...I then realized that the military’s goal to win
the hearts and minds of the Filipino people, promoting the good image of the
Philippine Navy and the Armed Forces of the Philippines can be done via
photography.”
Francisco used a PAO-Navy issued Canon EOS 60D and a Canon 24-105
mm L lens with the winning photo.
Captain Joe Patrick A. Martinez of the Division of Public Affairs Office-4th
ID of the Philippine Army bagged second. The photo depicted children of Sitio
Lantad (Misamis Oriental) watching television with Major General Oscar T.
Lactao, commander of the Philippine Army’s Fourth Infantry (Diamond)
Division and fellow servicemen of the Division. The image depicted the
Philippine Army’s willingness to help civilians in need, which in the photo’s
case was the barrio’s need for electricity and a means to get in touch with the
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PHILIPPINE NAVY WINS...(Continued from pg 4)
outside world via television.
Administrative Officer II
(Philippine Veterans’ Affairs OfficeVeterans’ Memorial and Historical
Division) Marlon Peralta landed in third
place with a photo of troops in Rayadillo
dress during the Araw ng Kagitingan
(Day of Valor), seemingly walking uphill
towards the Dambana ng Kagitingan
(Symbol of Valor) in Bataan. “The
[seemingly] uphill path walked by the
soldiers shows the struggle to achieve
valor...We at the Philippine Veterans’
Affairs Office (PVAO) always promote
valor as the armor of the soldiers,
enabling them to do heroic deeds,” said
Peralta.
For Peralta, the third place result
was a celebration of sorts for his first
year as part of the PVAO. “I was in awe,
it gave me confidence and validity that I
could be a photographer...This could
also help me out in the PVAO, as we do
community work.”
The contest was open to nonprofessional photographers of the DND
and its myriad bureaus or major service
commands. Each bureaus or major
service command can submit a
maximum of three entries, taken within
a January 2015-October 9 2015 time
frame, and should include a caption of
not more than 100 words (either in
English or Filipino). Photos must have a
minumum resolution of 1,400 x 1,120
pixels, and a printed output size of 16
5
inches x 20 inches (roughly half the size
of a 28 inch television).
Only minor digital enhancements
– for example, color retouching - were
allowed.
Submitted images must be
p h o to g ra p h e d
p e r s o n a l ly
by
participants, and should not be
published in any media outlet nor
deemed as winner in any other photo
contest.
Photos had to adhere to the theme
“Kagawaran ng Tanggulang Pambansa,
Kaagapay ng Sambayanan Tungo Sa
Isang Matatag, Maunlad at Mapayapang
Kinabukasan (Department of National
Defense, side by side with the country
towards a solid, progressive and
peaceful tomorrow),” and were judged
on theme relevance (35 percent), overall
impact (35 percent) and creativity (30
percent).
Judges of the photo tiff were
journalist Priam Nepomuceno, news
wire photographer Ted Aljibe and
Associated Press photographer Alberto
“Bullit” Marquez.
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PAEAN FOR THE POWERS OF DEFENSE:
HOW THE DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE’S HYMN WAS CREATED
By definition, a hymn is a song specifically written for
the purpose of highlighting a prominent personification.
That said, the Department of National Defense (DND)
hymn highlights what the DND is all about, from the
Philippine Army to rescue and relief efforts to wartime
policies.
Penned by reknowned singer-songwriter Noel
Cabangon (and the brainchild of DND-Public Affairs
Service deputy chief Marina M. Agustin), the DND hymn
was borne out of the need to have an institutional paean,
as the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the National
Defense Colleges of the Philippines (NDCP), the
Government Arsenal (GA) and the Philippine Veterans’
Affairs Office (PVAO) each had their respective canticles
– but the DND never had an anthem to call its own.
As part of the DND-Public Affairs Service’s (DNDPAS’) campaign to strengthen the image of the DND as a
whole, the DND proposed the creation of its own hymn
that would best represent the identity, core values and
unique traditions – along with paying homage to the DND’s
dedicated service (whether from its civilian or military
personnel) to the nation.
Cabangon was commissioned to do the anthem in late
2014, and by January 23, 2015, Secretary of National
Defense Voltaire Gazmin approved of the DND hymn’s
melody and lyrics. On March 20, 2015, the DND paean was
formally launched by Secretary Gazmin, promulgated by
Department Order 81. On April 13, 2015, the DND hymn
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was played during the regular Monday flag raising
ceremony for the first time, specifically at the General
Headquarters (GHQ) Canopy.
“I met then-AFP Chief Of Staff General Pio Catapang
in a gathering for [Budget Secretary] Butch Abad. It was
there where he told me that he liked my song Hanggang
Mamatay (‘Until Death’). He also asked me if the AFP can
use it for their campaign in raising people’s awareness on
what the AFP is doing and their advocacy. Then Captain
Frank Sayson from the PA, also a film-maker, contacted me
for the music video. While filming, [DND-PAS deputy chief]
Marina Agustin approached me and asked me if i can write
the hymn of the DND since the department is celebrating
its 75th anniversary,” recalled Cabangon.
Upon hearing the DND hymn for the first time, DNDPAS chief Director Arsenio Andolong was ebullient in
praise. “It’s very inspiring, especially when the hymn is
played with a brass band...The purely vocal version by
[DND hymn composer] Noel Cabangon doesn’t do it
justice...It shows the identity of those working at the DND,
what are we, who are we, what we do, and what are we
mandated to do.”
Agustin was also happy with the finished product. “I
love it whenever the DND hymn is played during the
Monday flag ceremony...It has been my dream to have a
DND hymn [for the longest time]...It’s worth the effort of
waking up in the morning, after the grogginess of the
weekends.”
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PAEAN FOR THE POWERS...(Continued from pg 8)
The positive effect of the DND hymn was also
reflected in those that made efforts to turn the paean
into a music video. “It’s a march of sorts that tugs at the
heartstrings...It’s bigger than life, it made me realize
that although I play a small part in the grand scheme of
things at the DND, we all have important roles to play,”
beamed Public Affairs Office-Philippine Navy director
Commander Lued Lincuna.
Lincuna’s command station recently won Best
Video in a recent DND-backed music video-making
contest for the DND hymn.
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Navy nails it again!
The Public Affairs Office of the
Philippine Navy (PAO-Navy) topped
the recently concluded Department of
National Defense (DND) 76th
anniversary video contest .
The PAO-Navy entry stood head
and shoulders atop a field that
included the Public Affairs Service of
the DND (PAO-DND), the Public
Affairs Office of the Philippine Air
Force (PAO-PAF), the Public Affairs
Office of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines (PAO-AFP) and the
Stratcom Division of the Philippine
Ve t e r a n s
Affairs
Office.
“When we received the call from
the DND to join the video adaptation
contest for the DND hymn, we
wondered how to make an already
beautiful theme more [attractive]...
Our working theme for the video was
putting ourselves in [Secretary of
National Defense Voltaire P. Gazmin’s]
mindset...We discussed, ‘How to think
like [Mr. Gazmin],’ and not just focus
on the Navy. We didn’t use still
images, everything in the video was
composed of moving shots, what’s
frequently happening on the ground,
what is the DND inside and out. We
didn’t want to show just the office
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inside goings-on of the civilian affairs
parts of the DND, we wanted to show
actions that best portrayed what they
do on a daily basis, we tried to avoid
centering on personalities and
instead focusing on the entities
comprising the DND,” said PAO-Navy
director Commander Lued Lincuna.
Lincuna claimed that took the
PAO-Navy five days to a week to build
the video. “Fortunately, we at the
PAO-Navy had archived footage from
previous endeavors, and our purely
PAO-Navy equipment is at a VERY
competitive level so that whenever
there are instances requiring
coverage, the output is topflight. Also,
doing the video was a team effort,
many contributed to the construction
of the video...Frankly, when the
deadline arrived and we had to
submit the finished video, I felt that
there were elements lacking, that we
could have done better...It was sheer
luck
that
we
w o n .”
Although the PAO-DND entry
finished in second, the theme
adherence and the fact that the
hymn’s lyrics were in sync with the
entry’s moving images wowed the
judges, which included reknowned
singer-songwriter Noel Cabangon
(who also composed the DND hymn),
Defense Press Corps president (and
DZRH senior reporter) Bing
Formento, and Business Mirror
motoring writer Randy Peregrino.
“This [the PAS-DND entry] is the
result of teamwork between
everybody at the PAS-DND, myself
and Jasmin ’Jas’ Añana in particular...I
chose the photos and layout, Jas did
most of the editing and video software
magic...Mind you, I never had any
formal training when it came to
making videos, but my family
background in fine arts and creative
matters helped,” beamed DND-Public
Affairs Service deputy chief Marina M.
Agustin upon learning of the PAODND
entry’s
result.
The PAS-PAF entry placed third.
Video entries were allowed to
one per bureau or major service
command, should be an original
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Outstanding DND employees hailed
PHILIPPINE NAVY WINS... (continued from pg. 10)
work, must not have any entertainment,
business, sports or national defense
personnel of note, and must not show
content that promotes or encourages
terrorism, sedition, racism, and illegal
activities.
Participating bureaus/major
service commands were responsible for
all video costs. Only Windows Movie
Maker, Adobe Premier, Sony Vegas and
similar desktop-based production
software were allowed in the production
and post-production of the final video
cuts.
Criteria for judging was based on
theme adherence (35 percent),
creativity and originality (30 percent),
entertainment value (20 percent), and
video quality (15 percent).
To recognize the contribution of its employees
to the organization, the Department of National
Defense/DND conferred awards to its outstanding
personnel for the year during its 76th founding
anniversary celebration.
Held last November 6, 2015, at the AFP
Commissioned Officers’ Club in Camp Aguinaldo, the
DND selected the 2015 model supervisors and
employees from the DND proper, the Armed Forces
of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippine Veterans
Affairs Office (PVAO), the Veterans Memorial Medical
Center (VMMC), the National Defense College of the
Philippines (NDCP), the Government Arsenal (GA),
and the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).
The model supervisors for 2015 were Denon
G. Anchinges (DND Proper), Eusebio M. Ramos, Jr.
(AFP), Maria Juanita F. Rivera (PVAO), Dr. Maria
Lourdes Regina Montenegro (VMMC), Amado M.
Posas (NDCP), Gladys M. Pua (GA), and Gloria DJ.
Marteja (OCD).
Meanwhile this year’s model employees are
Marie Carl R. Paragas (DND Proper), Noreen AcostaLalo (AFP), Don Jomar S. Hombrebueno, Rosita P.
Macay (VMMC), Janilyn Astrid T. Bartolome (NDCP),
Rolando V. Molano (GA), and Wellington I. Cabatuan
(OCD).
14 employees in the DND Proper were Mr.
Armando Ebreo M. Abejuela (OUSDP), Ms. Penelope
G. Pamittan (IAS), Ms. Faysaleyyah P. Abdullah
(OASSA), Mr. Samuel Castro (OASAIL), Mr. Dick P.
Diolola (OASHR), Mr. Johnafrey N. Advincula, Mr. Roy
M. Reyes, Mr. Ramon B. Nieves and Ms. Maria
Margarita H. Medina (AS), Ms. Ruthrina S. Gonzales
and Ms. Mia Lei V. Salbang (OASFM), Ms. Joyce Ann
S. Azurin (OASPP), Atty. Effie R. Agsaoay (LAS), and
Ms. Marina M. Agustin (PAS).
Outstanding Achievement Medal to Engr. Allan John G. Lumibao of the
GA’s engineering division, along with the AFP’s Major General Demosthenes
C. Santillan.
Engr. Lumibao was recognized for his meritorious achievement in
rehabilitating the Precision Net-Weight Filling and Check Weighing Machines
in March 2014, for just P50,000.00. His innovation brought the machines to
operational status, which would have cost P400,000.00 to P500,000.00 to
repair.
In addition, through Engr. Lumibao’s initiative, the machine’s inclusion
in the assembly process “increased even further the operational and logistical
management efficiency of the [GA] through the increased speed gained in
checking the weight of the bullet during cartridge assembly.”
Because of his “adaptive innovation and professional ingenuity,” Engr.
Lumibao contributed significantly in increasing the efficiency of the GA’s
production and lowering the cost for the government.
Each awardee received a cash incentive and a plaque of recognition
awarded by Secretary of National Defense Voltaire T. Gazmin, assisted by
Undersecretary of National Defense Honorio S. Azcueta and Office of the
Assistant Secretary for Human Resource OIC Director Nebuchadnezzar S.
Alejandrino.
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