Army Chief to take over as Defence Forces Chief
Published on: Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Kuala Lumpur: Chief of Army Tan Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi Raja Mohamed Noor has been appointed to take over as the Chief of Defence Forces on Dec 16, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein announced Tuesday.He said current Chief of Defence Forces Tan Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zin would take his accumulated annual leave and undergo transition training from that date. Zulkifeli's application to extend his service for 12 months beyond the mandatory retirement age, from June 14, 2016, to June 13, 2017, has been approved by the Armed Forces Council, he said. ADVERTISEMENT He also said that the council also approved Raja Mohamed Affandi's extension of service for 12 months beyond the mandatory retirement age, from June 20, 2017, to June 19, 2018. Hishammuddin said the decisions on the matter were adopted at the 548th meeting of the Armed Forces Council on May 23, and the appointments and extensions of service were consented to by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah.He told a press conference that the announcement was made six months earlier to avert any speculation, ensure a smooth transition of leadership and to enable the leaders to make the necessary preparations. Hishammuddin said the meeting also decided that Chief of Air Force Gen Tan Sri Roslan Saad would go on mandatory retirement in December and that his successor would be announced later. ADVERTISEMENT As such, the meeting approved an application for extension of his service for six months beyond the mandatory retirement age, from Nov 28, 2016, to May 27, 2017, with him taking his accumulated annual leave and undergoing transition training from Dec 21 this year. "December this year will also see the appointment of a new Chief of Air Force and a new Chief of Army," he said.
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Hishammuddin, who had just returned from a visit to the Philippines, said the tripartite meeting with Indonesian Defence Minister Gen (Rtd) Ryamizard Ryacudu and Philippine Defence Secretary Voltaire T. Gazmin on Monday discussed solutions to the security issue in the Sulu Sea. Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines agreed in principle for their respective armed forces to establish a trilateral working group on maritime patrol to handle maritime security issues. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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Hishammuddin is to visit Jakarta next month for a tripartite meeting with Indonesian and Philippine representatives to resume discussions on security cooperation in the common maritime area of the three countries in the Sulu Sea. He said there was a sense of urgency and political will to ensure that the initiative among the three countries was implemented on a fast track basis following similar meetings in Laos several weeks ago and in Manila on Monday.