600 elite soldiers massing at Fort Bonifacio

Against a backdrop of a volatile political situation marked by mounting calls for presidential resignation, spreading coup jitters and a worsening economy, the sight of battle-tested soldiers and war materiel moving into the metropolis could easily be interpreted as a preparation for the worst.

Crack elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) Special Operations Command, composed of the Army’s elite Special Forces and Scout Rangers from Bulacan, joined by the Light Armor Brigade, arrived in waves at Fort Bonifacio from various command posts in Bulacan.

Military authorities assured the people, however, that such troop movements, which could have sent shivers down some people’s spine, were merely part of preparations for the symbolic turnover of command of the Army, to be attended by President Estrada, set on Sunday.

Outgoing Army chief Lt. Gen. Voltaire Gazmin will yield his saber to Lt. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva, former chief of the AFP’s Southern Command (Southcom) based in Zamboanga City.

On the other hand, Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Battalion, will take over the Southcom post.

Former President Corazon Aquino, under whose watch Gazmin served as commander of the Presidential Security Group, will also attend the affair.

It was not known if Mrs. Aquino’s successor and Mr. Estrada’s predecessor, former President Fidel Ramos, himself a former AFP chief, would attend the turnover of command.

Gazmin was among Aquino’s most trusted military aides who steadfastly defended her against a series of coup attempts led by cashiered Army Col. Gregorio Honasan, now a senator.

Camiling’s unit figured prominently in the government’s campaign against Muslim separatist and extremist guerrillas in Mindanao.

Military top brass laughed off reporters’ queries on coup rumors even as they admitted the presence of some 600 troops at the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio.

"The only troop movement we will have is the change of command," they said. "Maybe, they are trying to piece together some normal, usual or even insignificant events, and make them into a coup," Army spokesman Lt. Col. Anthony Alcantara said.

"If a coup is announced, then there is no coup," he quipped.

Alcantara pointed out that the troops to be used in the parade and review for Sunday’s turnover rites will even be smaller than in previous similar events.

"They arrived (here) as early as last week and have been practicing. Aside from the Light Armor Brigade, some came from the 2nd Infantry Division from Mindanao and the 7th Infantry Dvision from the Northern Luzon Command," Alcantara said.

He did not explain why the troops from as far south as Mindanao have to be shipped to Manila for the ceremony, while there are other units from Army camps in Luzon which are much closer to the metropolis.