New Southcom chief named

The Armed Forces of the Philippines has a new Southern Command chief.

President Arroyo yesterday disclosed that Southern Luzon Command (Solcom) head Maj. Gen. Roy Kyamko will be the new chief of the Southcom and will receive his third star.

Kyamko takes over the Southcom from Lt. Gen. Narciso Abaya, whom the President named Friday as the new AFP chief of staff.

Abaya assumes the leadership of the AFP on April 8, the birthday of incumbent AFP chief Gen. Dionisio Santiago, who turns 56, the mandatory retirement age.

The President also said she would like Philippine Army vice-commander Maj. Gen. Alfonso Dagudag to take over from Kyamko as Solcom chief.

With Abaya at her teleconference in Malacañang yesterday, President said she wants the incoming AFP chief of staff to "nominate" Kyamko and Dagudag to their new posts when he assumes his place as head of the AFP Board of Generals.

The AFP chief co-chairs the AFP Board of Generals with Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes. The board recommends key promotions in the military to the President as the Commander-in-Chief.

"Because we now have 58 new generals (in the AFP) this gives us more room for three star generals," the President said. "Before April 8, I have instructed Secretary Reyes to finalize the rolls so that all area commanders will have three stars... so there will be six three-star generals."

At present, only the Southcom commander is a three-star general, she said. Other area commanders, including those who lead the Solcom, Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom), Western Command (Wescom) and the Visayas Command (Viscom) and the Inspector-General of the AFP have only two stars. – Marichu Villanueva