Soldier displays honesty and concern during VP’s visit

Iloilo– In an another display of honesty and concern, a soldier from the Army’s 301st Infantry (Bayanihan) Brigade chose to turn-in a wallet found around 9:00 a.m. on June 13 at the Iloilo Airport.

Sergeant Wenceslao Pabito Jr was tasked to secure the arrival of Philippines’ Vice President Jejomar Binay at the airport when he found a wallet near the garbage area containing a cheque.

Pabito immediately turned-in said wallet to Mr Arnel Lumbo, GMA Super Radyo field reporter who was covering the event. 

When asked for comments, Pabito remarked that he immediately thought of what might be an immediate need the owner had to utilize the cheque. He said that if it did had money on it, he would have not afforded to keep and use it for his family’s needs thinking that the said money could be much needed by the owner.  

The wallet with a cheque inside amounting to 4,500 pesos is owned by Anthony Cortel from Pandac, Pavia, Iloilo and an employee of Hotel Del Rio in Iloilo City. According to Mr Lumbo, Mr Cortel was so happy that his wallet picked-up by kind  hearted person otherwise it will no longer be returned to him.

According to Major Enrico Gil Ileto, Public Affairs Officer of the 3rd Infantry (Speadhead) Division, this is the latest inspiring story of honesty displayed by Army soldiers since the start of this year.

Privates Danny Faigane and Marlon Vera from the 3ID’s 32nd Division Reconnaissance Company handed to its owner, Virginia  Callora, P90,000 in cash found in the retrieval site in Brgy Solonggon, La Libertad, Negros Oriental following the 6.9 magnitude earthquake that severely hit said area last  February 6, 2012.

Last March 3, 2012, Corporal Fernando Samperoy of 3ID’s 47th Infantry Battalion also found a bag left at the parking area of the Kabankalan Cathedral at Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental. The bag containing an amount of P50,000 cash is owned by Rev. Father Leopoldo Cahilig, parish priest of Isabela of the same province.

“These stories which tells our soldier’s honesty continues to inspire the entire Army and it portrays how we value honesty in the organization,” said Major General Jose Mabanta Jr, Commander of the Army’s 3ID.

 “It is part and parcel of the Army’s transformation effort to develop the character of our soldier to be able to internalize the core values of Honor, Patriotism and Duty,” added Mabanta.

For Colonel Arnold Quiapo, Commander of the 301st Bde and the immediate commander of Pabito, this act of honesty is worth emulating.

“We continue to inculcate in our soldiers the importance of honesty. I would like to personally congratulate Sgt Pabito for giving honor and pride to the Army,” added Col Quiapo.   


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Philippine Army Spearhead Troopers | June 19, 2012 | Article Link

Philippine Air Force new group commander in Visayas assumes post

Camp Hernandez, Dingle, Iloilo – A graduate of Philippine Air Force Flying School (PAFFS) assumed today as the new commander of Tactical Operations Group 6 (TOG6), 2nd Air Division, Philippine Air Force in a change of command ceremony here.

Colonel Frederick Cutler, a graduate of Pilot Training at PAFFS in 1991 and a seasoned combat pilot, succeeded Colonel Rene Honasan who commanded TOG6 since April 2011.

In his remarks, Colonel Honasan expressed thanks to the men and women of this unit and said that he might not be a perfect commander but the unwavering support of his men made him accomplished many things that made this unit stand-out among the other units.

On the other hand, Colonel Cutler on his assumption remarks said that he will pursue the good things that were started and initiated by his predecessor.

For Brigadier General Nestor Deona, Commander of  2nd AD, PAF and the Presiding Officer during the ceremony, in his message acknowledge the hard work, resourcefulness and intelligence and the remarkable accomplishments of the outgoing commander.  

TOG6 was originally based at former Iloilo Airport in Manduriao, Iloilo City. Its headquarters was transferred to Camp Hernandez in Dingle, Iloilo on 2009 when the airport was transferred to Cabatuan-Sta Barbara boundaries.

The presence of TOG6 in the Visayas has greatly contributed and complemented the efforts of Army forces in the maintenance of peace and in disaster rescue and relief operations in this region.

Most notable among the countless accomplishments of this unit includes relief and rescue operations during tropical storms “Frank” in 2008 and “Sendong” in 2011, and the 6.9 magnitude earthquake that severely his Negros Oriental early this year.

During the stint of Colonel Honasan as commander, TOG6 crafted its own operational framework consistent with the objectives and intent of Internal Peace and Security Plan “Bayanihan” with the motto: “ Let’s think, organize, and go bayanihan for a just and lasting peace in Western Visayas.

With this orientation and focus, the unit was able to accomplished 25 civic action activities, 14 medical and dental civic action programs, six bloodlettings, two disaster relief operations and support to seven socio-cultural activities.

Significant among these various activities was the library project for two depressed schools in Alegria Elementary School in Dingle, Iloilo and Tubudan National High School in San Remigio, Antique from 2011-2012 wherein 3,000 books and one desktop computer were donated each school.

With these accomplishments, TOG6 under the leadership of Colonel Honasan was adjudged as 2nd AD’s TOG of the year for 2012. The unit will likewise receive the Commanding General of the Philippine Air Force Streamer Award as TOG of the year during the PAF anniversary on July 4, 2012.

The unit was also adjudged as the best TOG for the year 2011 making it the only unit in PAF that received this distinguished award for two consecutive years.

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Philippine Army Spearhead Troopers | June 11, 2012 | Article Link

Military grad is new head of Scout Ranger unit

AN ILONGGO Philippine Military Academy Class'91 graduate was installed as the new battalion commander of an elite force of the Philippine Army deployed here in central Negros.

Lieutenant Colonel Oriel Pangcog of Iloilo City was installed on Saturday as the new commander of the 1st Scout Ranger Battalion based in La Granja, La Carlota City 

Pangcog who just completed the General Staff Course, a schooling required for an officer to become a battalion commander, started his military career as a Scout Ranger and spent his early years as a young lieutenant in Mindanao mostly in Agusan and Surigao provinces.

He said being an Ilonggo is an advantage, considering that most military officers assigned here are confronted with the problem on language barrier, especially in communicating with the local residents in the hinterlands of Negros.

Pangcog replaced Lieutenant Colonel Rodolfo Ileto who had a brief stint with the unit and has to go on GSC schooling.

Pangcog, who had a masters degree in Peace and Conflict studies which he took up at the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia, pointed out that his unit will be extending support to the 303rd Brigade of the Philippine Army of which they are under operational control.

He envisioned the unit and its troopers to be respected by their peers but feared by the enemy of the state and at the same time will serve the Negrenses in their desire for peace.

He said he has reminded every member of the 1st Scout Ranger Battalion that, under his leadership, there should be no human rights violation.

Each member of the unit has to adhere to human rights to the rule of law and there should be no gray areas as far as these are concerned, Pangcog added. 

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Teresa D. Ellera | SunStar.Com.Ph | May 15, 2012 | Article Link

3 soldiers, 2 civilians wounded in Iloilo clash

ILOILO CITY, Philippines—At least three soldiers and two civilians were wounded when suspected New People’s Army rebels ambushed two military vehicles in a remote village in Tubungan, Iloilo Monday morning, three days before the NPA’s 43rd founding anniversary.

The suspected rebels, believed to be under the NPA’s Napoleon Tumagtang Command and the Southern Front Committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines, fled to hinterland villages after a firefight in Barangay Ingay in Tubungan, 42 km south of Iloilo City, according to Maj. Enrico Gil Ileto, spokesperson of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division (3ID).

Around 18 soldiers belonging to the Army’s 82nd Infantry Battalion based in Miag-ao town in Iloilo were on board a 6-by-6 truck and a KM450 military vehicle when one of the trucks was hit by an explosion believed to be from an improvised explosive around 8 a.m. The suspected rebels subsequently opened fire on the soldiers.

A driver of a jeepney that was passing in the area and an elderly woman in a house near the ambush site suffered minor wounds after they were caught in the crossfire.

The identities of the wounded soldiers and civilians were still unavailable.

Two military helicopters and troops of the 3ID were sent to Tubungan and neighboring areas to pursue the suspected rebels.

Ileto said the vehicles were on their way to the town proper to bring trainees of Technical Education and Skills Development Authority to Iloilo City.

The NPA, the CPP’s armed wing, will commemorate its 43rd founding anniversary on March 29.

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Nestor P. Burgos Jr. | Inquirer Visayas | March 26, 2012 | Article Link