Military commander assures public: No troops movement on "destabilization"

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines – The highest ranking officer of the Philippine Army in Negros Oriental declared on Tuesday that his officers and men are supporting the duly constituted authority and the administration of President Benigno Simeon Aquino III amid reports of an ouster plot against the chief executive.

Colonel Francisco Patrimonio, commander of the 302nd Infantry Brigade based in Tanjay City, Negros Oriental, assured the public that there is no movement of troops in Philippine Army units under his leadership.

Patrimonio said he has not received any reports of retired military officers or personnel visiting Philippine Army camps to recruit supporters to the destabilization plot against the Aquino administration.

The brigade has not received also any official communication from the 3rd Infantry Division based in Panay regarding a planned coup attempt, he said.

Patrimonio nonetheless announced he will direct his unit commanders, specifically those of the 79th Infantry Battalion and the 11th Infantry Battalion, and other independent military companies, such as the 1st Scout Ranger’s Alpha Company, under his operational control, to closely monitor their troops and visitors coming to their camps.

He however admitted that an attempt to destabilize the Aquino government may not be far from possible, but he believed that those who may be behind it will not succeed.

“There are no legitimate issues against the current administration,” he said, adding that democracy is at work now and any issues prevailing within the ranks of the military organization are being resolved judiciously at different levels.

The current political climate is not the same as in previous administrations that had faced coup attempts, Patrimonio pointed out. “The rumored plot is far from the truth,” he told The FREEMAN in a telephone interview.

Media reports on destabilization efforts purportedly by Aquino’s political enemies and by retired military generals have been spreading, but the president had announced he has the assurance of the Armed Forces of the Philippines that they are behind him, being their commander-in-chief. - THE FREEMAN