PA's 5th Infantry Division to welcome new commander Friday

From the Philippine News Agency (Apr 3): PA's 5th Infantry Division to welcome new commander Friday

CAMP MELCHOR DELA CRUZ, Gamu, Isabela -- Soldiers of Camp Melchor dela Cruz here will welcome their new commanding general in a turnover ceremony to be held inside the camp on Friday morning.

Army 1st Lt. Charmaign Leonero, public affairs chief of 5ID, said the present officer-in-charge of the Army Division, Brig. Gen. Ricardo Jalad, will turn over the command to Major Gen. Benito Antonio T. de Leon.

De Leon is a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) “Dimalupig” Class of 1981 and a former commander of Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) at Camp O’Donnell based at Capas, Tarlac.

The army described De Leon as a “Mindanao veteran” who saw action as battalion commander in the all-out-war of then President Joseph Estrada against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

During the time of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, De Leon was the commander of the 104th Infantry Brigade that implemented the 2009 “Martial Law” order in Maguindanao against the private armies of the Ampatuan clan, who were implicated in the Maguindanao Massacre of 58 people, most of them members of media.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=632146