Tuesday, January 22, 2013

New Army, SOCOM chiefs named

From the Visayan Daily Star (Jan 22): New Army, SOCOM chiefs named

Two generals, have been named new commanding generals of the Philippine Army, and its elite Special Operations Command. Lt. Gen. Noel Coballes will be installed today by President Benigno Aquino III as commander of the Philippine Army at Fort Andres Bonifacio in Taguig City, Metro Manila, Major General Maximo Carto, Army chief of staff, said yesterday.

Coballes, who used to command the Army’s elite Scout Ranger Regiment, will replace Lt. Gen. Emmanuel Bautista, who is now the Armed Forces chief of staff. It was not determined, however, who will replace Coballes as AFP Vice-Chief of Staff.

Brig. Gen. Jet Joel Velarmino, meanwhile temporarily assumed yesterday as SOCOM chief, replacing Maj. Gen. Romulo Bambao, who retired yesterday from the military service, as he had reached the mandatory retirement age of 56.

Velarmino, who used to command the defunct 6th Special Forces Battalion in central Negros in 1996, is supervising the Army’s elite SF and Scout Ranger Regiments, as well as the counter-terrorist Light Reaction Battalion unit, as SOCOM chief.

As commander of the Scout Ranger Regiment, Coballes, was responsible for the neutralization of three notorious foreign terrorists including Abu Sayyaf leader Umbra Jumdail, alias Doctor Abu, and two leaders of the Jemaah Islamiyah, in Mindanao.

Velarmino reportedly headed the Army’s elite troopers who captured kidnappers of Giuseppe Pierantoni in Zamboanga del Sur in April 2002, military records show.

Army spokesman Major Harry Cabunoc said Velarmino will be SOCOM chief in an acting capacity, until the permanent commander is designated.

Before his appointment, Velarmino was the deputy commander of Socom and also served as commander of the 101st Infantry Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division in Mindanao.

Velarmino, 52, is a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class 1982, while Coballes belongs to PMA Class 1980.

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2013/January/22/topstory7.htm

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