Tabak sends off new soldiers

From the Philippine Information Agency (Jun 22): Tabak sends off new soldiers

"When you are already in the field, learn from your seniors, recognize the differences in people, and relate to cultural diversity.”

This was the advice of Brigadier General (BGen.) Demy Tejares, assistant commander of the 1st Infantry (Tabak) Division, Philippine Army, to the new soldiers during the entrustment of firearms and sendoff ceremony held on Monday at the Tabak headquarters in Kuta Major Cesar L. Sang-an, Barangay Pulacan in this municipality.

Tejares also emphasized to the soldiers that the firearms entrusted to them would serve as their “friend, wife and companion in the field” while protecting the rights of the Filipino people.

In the same occasion, Mayor Leonardo Babasa of Bayog, Zamboanga del Sur also told the young soldiers “the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is a co-manager in providing the basic services to the people."

Babasa traced the roots of insurgency in the country to poverty, social injustice, ignorance or lack of education, corruption, absence of economic opportunities, and fulfillment of personal goals.

To solve this problem, he said, there should be coordination, cooperation and collaboration between and among the AFP, civilian government, nongovernment organizations (NGOs), people’s organizations (POs), and other stakeholders.

Babasa also cited discipline as the best formula to drawing support from the masses saying, “The best Civil-Military Operation (CMO) is a well-disciplined soldier."

Representatives from the government line agencies, NGOS, POs, religious groups, youth groups, indigenous peoples (IP), business organizations and farmers’ association personally handed the firearms to 200 privates who are due for deployment within Tabak’s area of jurisdiction which covers the whole of Zamboanga Peninsula region including the provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and the province of Misamis Occidental of region 10.

http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1431466567241/tabak-sends-off-new-soldiers