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Philippines announces reason for navy chief removal

The Philippines has relieved Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado from his position of Philippine navy chief, announced the National Defence Department of the Philippines on December 20.
Philippines announces reason for navy chief removal ảnh 1 Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado (Source: philstar.com)

Hanoi (VNA) – ThePhilippines has relieved Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado from his positionof Philippine navy chief, announced the National Defence Department of the Philippineson December 20.

Speaking with reporters, DefenceSecretary of the Philippines Delfin Lorenzana said the navy chief was sackeddue to a disagreement over the building of two new warships worth 15.5 billion PHP(309 million USD).

In 2016, the Philippine Governmentinked a deal with Hyundai Heavy Industries of the Republic of Korea to buildtwo warships to be delivered in the Philippines in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

Lorenzana said the project wasalready several months behind schedule because the navy had failed to completea design review on the vessels in time for the contractor to start work.

He alleged the navy chief wasdelaying the project to force the government and Hyundai to award a separatecontract for the warships' combat management system to another foreign company.

Lorenzana said this is tantamount toinsubordination, adding that the admiral is not under investigation forcorruption.

Mercado has not publicly responded toLorenzana's allegations.-VNA

VNA
#Philippines#Philippine navy chief#warships#Philippine National Defence Department#Hyundai Heavy Industries#vietnamplus#Vietnam News Agency
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