Friday, November 19, 2010

Bemedaled army general heads Mindanao command

Lieutenant General Raymundo Ferrer, head of the Eastern Mindanao Command based in Davao City, assumes Friday, November 19, 2010 as the new chief of the Western Mindanao Command whose operations cover half of the southern Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)


ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 19, 2010) – A bemedaled army general who fought Muslim and communist rebels in the southern Philippines was named Friday as commander of military forces in Western Mindanao.

Lieutenant General Raymundo Ferrer, head of the Eastern Mindanao Command based in Davao City, assumed as the new chief of the Western Mindanao Command whose operations cover half of the southern Philippines.

There were also proposals to reunify the two military commands, which were formed after the Southern Command was split into two in 2006, to address threats posed by Muslim and communist insurgencies and terrorism.

Ferrer, who graduated from the Philippine Military Academy in 1977, was one of few generals who resisted efforts by known supporters of former President Gloria Arroyo to cheat the presidential elections in 2004 in Basilan province where he was then commander of military forces.

Because of that, Ferrer’s appointment to higher positions was several times bypassed during Arroyo’s term. It was also during Arroyo’s term that she named Lieutenant General Delfin Bangit, who graduated from the Philippine Military Academy in 1978, as Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Chief of Staff. (Mindanao Examiner)

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