Vice Admiral Rommel Supangan assumed command as the 31st Commandant of the Philippine Coast Guard in a retirement and change of command ceremony led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Manila on Monday.

The appointment of Supangan was announced by Marcos during the ceremony for Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan.

Under Gavan’s leadership, the PCG conducted 4,902 search and rescue operations, saving 22,784 lives. Its maritime law enforcement operations also responded to 999 security threats, while maritime patrols and joint exercises with international partners helped strengthen operational readiness and cooperation.

Supangan presented four strategic pillars that will guide his leadership which includes "institutional transformation and good governance; effective maritime governance; modernization and capacity building; and strategic partnerships and cooperation as his four core priorities."

Under the transformation and good governance, the PCG Commandant seeks to strengthen institutional accountability and transparency across Coast Guard units while sustaining organizational reforms. He also emphasizes the PCG's role in safeguarding the Philippines’ maritime interests in strengthening the effective maritime governance of the organization.

“The PCG's sovereign patrols, particularly in the West Philippine Sea, will support the whole-of-government approach to assert our sovereignty and sovereign rights. We will stand on what is ours, and we will do so with dignity, integrity, and absolute resolve,” he said.

Supangan also aims to advance the development of Coast Guard capabilities to address the country's evolving maritime safety and security challenges

through the modernization and capacity building, while strategic partnerships and cooperation, focuses on strengthening collaboration with government agencies, international partners, and maritime stakeholders.

“As we face an era defined by shifting geopolitical tides and escalating maritime vulnerabilities, the PCG must stand as an unyielding vanguard, resolute in action, governance, and compassionate in service,” he said.

A member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1995, Supangan holds a degree in Naval System Engineering and a Master of Science in Maritime Affairs, majoring in Marine Environment and Ocean Management, from the World Maritime University in Malmö, Sweden, where he studied as a Sasakawa Fellow of the Nippon Foundation.

Supangan previously led programs and partnerships aimed at strengthening marine environmental protection across the country when he served as Commander of the Coast Guard Marine Environmental Protection Command (MEPCOM).

With eight years of shipboard duty, the new PCG Commandant holds the Coast Guard Command-at-Sea Badge and has commanded five commissioned Coast Guard vessels and two vessels of the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR). Robina Asido/PHS