The appointment of Lt. Gen. Raul Del Rosario as chief of the Western Command is part of the key reshuffles in the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the past week
WESCOM. Lieutenant General Raul Del Rosario fill the post vacated by Navy chief Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado. Wescom photo
The military command responsible for the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) has a new commander.
Lieutenant General Raul Del Rosario is now the commanding general of the Western Command (Wescom), overseeing entire Palawan province and the Kalayaan Group of Islands (Spratlys). The post was vacated a month ago when Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado was appointed the new Philippine Navy chief. (READ: Duterte picks West PH Sea commander as new Navy chief)
Del Rosario assumes the post at a time when Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte seeks warmer relations with China, the military superpower that has aggressively claimed almost all of the South China Sea.
CHANGE OF COMMAND. Lieutenant General Raul Del Rosario fills post vacated by Navy chief Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado (center). Wescom photo
Discovering China's 'mischief'
Del Rosario was pulled out as commanding general of the Central Command (Centcom) – responsible for the Visayas region – after serving only 4 months there. Army Major General Oscaro Lactao was appointed to take his place in Centcom. They are classmates at the Philippine Military Academy Class (PMA) of 1984.
It is a return to the area for Del Rosario, who was the fighter pilot who discovered in 1994 China's invasion of the previously Philippine-controlled Mischief Reef, one of the maritime features in the Kalayaan Group of Islands (Spratlys). An international tribunal recently ruled that the reef, already turned into an artificial island by China, is part of the Philippine exclusive economic zone. (READ: Highlights of ruling: China violated Philippine sovereign rights)
Del Rosario was back then doing his regular patrol over the disputed waters, flying one of the now-retired US-made F-5 fighter jets of the Philippine Air Force.
The Philippine Air Force has only recently re-acquired its fighter jet capability. Four of the 12 FA-50 fighter jets from South Korea have arrived in the Philippines, but have yet to be deployed pending the training of the pilots. (READ: Air Force a joke no more, gets fighter jets)
They are expected to be deployed in the West Philippine Sea, which will put them under Del Rosario's command.
Reshuffle in the military
CENTCOM. Major General Oscar Lactao is the new chief of the military command responsible for the Visayas. Centcom photo
The appointment of Del Rosario and Lactao are two of the key reshuffles the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) made the past week.
The military also has a new chief of staff, Lieutenant General Eduardo Año, and new Army chief, Lieutenant General Glorioso Miranda. They are classmates at the PMA Class of 1983.
Del Rosario also served in the AFP headquarters as Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and then commander of the 1st Air Division before he was appointed to command Centcom.
Lactao served as AFP Inspector General before his appointment to Centcom. He also previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and later commander of the 4th Infantry Division.
http://www.rappler.com/nation/155165-reshuffle-wescom-centcom
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