Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez expressed his support to the
proposal in the bid to enhance the peace and order in the community and improve
the quality of life of city residents.
“The peace and order of the city is our priority program and
everything else will follow,” Gomez said.
Balikatan exercises are designed to maintain and develop the
security relationship between the Philippines and the United States Armed
Forces through crisis-action planning, humanitarian assistance, enhanced
training to counter terrorism and promote inter-operability of the forces.
Capt. Louis Kalmar, humanitarian and civic assistance
planner of the Philippine-US Balikatan program said aside from the enhanced
military training there will be medical mission, humanitarian assistance.
Among these are the construction of new school buildings and
toilets in classrooms, renovations of school buildings, providing books and
learning materials and other capabilities needed by students and the community.
Asked if the move of President Rodrigo Duterte to pull out
the US Armed Forces in Mindanao will not
affect the planned Balikatan, Gomez said that “since the move to pull them out
is not yet final, it is best to push through with the initial talks to do
Balikatan here.”
“What will benefit most the people of Ormoc, will always be
my priority,” he said.
Capt Kalmar said they will return to Ormoc in December to
finalize the Balikatan 2017 plans.
Balikatan is a Tagalog word meaning
"shoulder-to-shoulder.” The exercises have been the cornerstone of Philippines–US
military relations since the US
bases in the Philippines
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=923204
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