AFP won't suspend general based on anonymous complaint

MANILA, Philippines - The military will not slap a preventive suspension on the general accused of using soldiers in building his three-storey residential house in Taguig.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public affairs chief Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala said they could not suspend Brig. Gen. Dante Costes, the subject of the allegation, based on an anonymous letter.

“We have to look into the letter, investigate, find out and then the investigators will be the one to determine what recommendation to make,” Zagala said.

“We have to take into consideration that there must be due process and we also have to take into consideration that the complainant filed an anonymous letter. We must verify the contents of the anonymous letter,” he added.

Related: AFP general using soldiers as construction workers?

Zagala said those who wrote the letter of complaint against Costes should not fear any reprisals if their accusations are true.

“What we want to emphasize here is correct any wrongdoing, If there is any wrongdoing, they (complainants) should not be afraid,” Zagala said.

“We should look at the investigations as a means to fix the wrongdoing, find out the truth and make the necessary corrections,” he added.

Costes, the chief of the Communication, Electronics Information System Service-Armed Forces of the Philippines (CEISSAFP), has been accused of using soldiers assigned to his office to build his house at the AFP Officers’ Village in Taguig.

The military’s Inspector General is now investigating the allegations.

The investigation stemmed from an anonymous but detailed letter which detailed how Costes supposedly used soldiers as his engineers.

In the letter, a group of “concerned citizens” claimed that Costes had tapped his 2nd Group Commander, Lt. Col.  Arthur Pulmano, as his construction engineer and a certain Lieutenant Commander Dela Cruz as deputy engineer.

They claimed that sergeants assigned in CEISSAFP had been designated as construction foremen.

“For now sir, we could no longer depend on anybody here at our unit to look after our welfare. Even the command’s Provost Marshal the command Inspector General are doing nothing to address and stop these anomalies. We are hoping that this illegal practice within the military service is soon addressed,” the letter read.

“Is it right for the soldiers to abandon their mandated military tasks to serve the personal interest of Gen. Costes as his construction workers?” they added.

The “concerned citizens” said the military leadership can verify their allegations by sending a team to the AFP Officers’ Village in Taguig.

Zagala said Costes has expressed readiness to face the investigation and to explain his side on the issue.