Jamaine Punzalan

Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año gives an update to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte during a meeting with the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) core members at the Malacañan Palace on January 6, 2022. Alberto Alcain, Presidential Photo

Article (news)

Jervis Manahan

ABS-CBN News

MANILA (2nd UPDATE) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has accepted the courtesy resignation of National Security Adviser Eduardo Año, the Palace said Wednesday. The Palace said Año has decided to retire from public service after decades of service in government and military. It also thanked Año for his service, with Palace Press Officer Claire Castro saying the former saying the former armed forces chief had helped strengthen the national security framework, advanced counterterrorism and internal security efforts and ensured close coordination within the security sector.&quot;His leadership has helped maintain stability and protect the welfare of our citizens,&quot; she also said.Año, in a statement shared by the Philippine Information Agency, said he was retiring from government service &quot;due to health reasons that require my full attention and care.&quot;He said that public service has been &quot;the defining mission of his life&quot; and that it has been a privilege to serve the Filipino people as he thanked Marcos Jr. for the trust and the members of the national security community for their professionalism.&quot;In recent months, it has become apparent that I must prioritize my health and well-being,&quot; he said.Prior to serving as national security adviser, Año headed the Department of Interior and Local Government during the Duterte administration.He was also Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff and commanding general of the Philippine Army before that.Año went through two heart bypass surgeries in 2021, <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/05/03/21/ao-im-fully-recovered-from-2-heart-bypass-surgeries">when he had to take a three-month medical leave</a>. He said his recovery took two months instead of the typical seven days &quot;because of many complications.&quot; The surgeries followed two bouts with COVID-19 in 2020 that he said had affected his health.&quot;I felt very different. Mabilis na akong hingalin, mabilis palagi ang heartbeat,&quot; he said.<div> </div><div>FORMER AFP CHIEF OBAN IS NEW NSA</div>Marcos Jr. has appointed Eduardo Oban Jr. as Año&#x27;s successor as national security adviser.As NSA, Oban will also be director-general of the National Security Council, the government&#x27;s primary advisory body on coordinating implementation of national security programs and policies.Oban is a former chief of ataff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1979.Citing Oban&#x27;s &quot;extensive experience in military operations, defense planning, and national security&quot;, Castro said Marcos Jr. is confident that Año&#x27;s successor &quot;will provide steady and capable leadership in advancing the country&#x27;s national security priorities.&quot;

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has accepted the courtesy resignation of National Security Adviser Eduardo Año, the Palace said Wednesday.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has accepted the courtesy resignation of National Security Adviser Eduardo Año, the Palace said Wednesday.

Eduardo Año resigns as security adviser

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Eduardo Año resigns as security adviser

Jervis Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published April 15, 2026 02:14 PM PHT

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Updated April 15, 2026 03:51 PM PHT

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Eduardo Año

Eduardo Oban Jr.

National Security Adviser

National Security Council

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