PNoy leads inspection of the newly-acquired warship ‘BRP Gregorio Del Pilar

PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday inspected the country’s first Hamilton class cutter, the newly acquired and refurbished BRP Gregorio del Pilar.

In his speech, Aquino said BRP Del Pilar will further modernize the Armed Forces.

Manned by 13 officers and 82 enlisted personnel, BRP Gregorio del Pilar entered the country last week after a month-long voyage from the United States. It dropped its anchor at the Manila Bay, Monday morning to undergo customs, immigration and quarantine inspection.

The Philippine Navy recently acquired the refurbished US Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton (WHEC- 715) and commissioned it as BRP Gregorio del Pilar Pacific Fleet 15. The 378-foot vessel with a crew capacity of 180 is equipped with armament and weapons system, propulsion plant, electrical generation, helicopter hangar and flight deck, among others.

It will be deployed to carry out the mission for drug interdiction, law enforcement, search and rescue operations, defense readiness and migrant interdiction. It will also perform tasks in protecting the country’s natural gas and oil exploration projects off Palawan amid reported incursions in the West Philippine Sea.

Also present during the ceremonies were United States Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Energy Secretary Rene Almendras, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, Communications Operations head Herminio Coloma Jr. (End)

Ph Dragon Boat Team, gipasidunggan sa AFP og Triple M award

TAGBILARAN CITY, Aug. 15 (PIA) – GIPASIDUNGGAN sa Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) og Military Merit Medal (Triple M) ang Philippine Dragon Boat Federation team sa Camp Aguinaldo dungan sa flag raising ceremony ganinang buntag.

Kini human nilang nasakmit ang lima ka gold ug duha ka silver medals gikan sa 10th International Dragon Boat Federation World Championships sa Tampa Bay, Florida sa Estados Unidos.

Onse ka sakop sa AFP ang apil sa grupo; walo gikan sa Philippine Army kauban silang team manager Major Harold Cabunoc ug team captain Sergeant Usman Anterola, duha gikan sa Philippine Air Force ug usa gikan sa Philippine Navy.

Dawaton usab nila karong hapon ang pasidungog sa kongreso sa ilang kadaugan.

Nanghinaut si Major Cabunoc nga maapil og hatag sa awarding karong hapon ang P1.5 million nga hinabang kanila sa mga kongresista.

Niadtong Biyernes, gihatagan ni Presidente Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino III og presidential citation ang Philippine Dragon Boat Federation Team. (PIA-Bohol/ecb)

Oban named new AFP chief

PRESIDENT Benigno Simeon Aquino III named Lieutenant General Eduardo Oban Jr. as the
42nd chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, replacing Gen. Ricardo David Jr. who
will retire on March 8.

Oban is the third AFP chief to come from the Air Force since 1996.

Before his appointment as the new AFP Chief, Oban held the third highest post in the Armed
Forces, being the Deputy Chief of Staff responsible for the administration and supervision of the
joint coordinating, technical and special staffs of the military headquarters.

He is a member of PMA Class of 1979 and graduated as one of the topnotchers of his class. He
was formerly Vice Commander of the Air Force.

Before he entered the PMA, Oban graduated from the University of Santo Tomas. He also has a
master’s degree in business economics from the University of Asia and the Pacific. He will retire
on Dec. 13 this year.

Oban’s most prominent role in his career was his involvement in negotiations to end the
Oakwood mutiny in 2003. The general was among those chosen by the mutinous Magdalo to be
part of the government panel that negotiated with them for their return to the barracks.

A former instructor pilot, Oban hails from Sorsogon. (PIA)

C-130 gamiton sa AFP sa pagbakwit sa mga Pinoy sa Libya

ANDAM na ang Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) aron gamiton ang C-130 plane niini
alang sa pagbakwit sa may 200 ka overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) nga napiit karon sa
kagubot sa Libya.

Matud pa ni AFP Spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta Jr., gihuwat na lamang sa Philippine
Air Force (PAF) ang go signal gikan sa Malacañang ug uban pang hingtungdan nga ahensya
sa kagamhanan aron mobiya na sa Libya ug i-rescue ang mga Pinoy didto.

Niingon si Mabanta nga 150 ka pasahero ang kapasidad sa usa ka C130 plane kun wala kini
bagahe ug kung adunay mga dala ang mga OFW’s, naa sa 100 ang mahimong mosakay sa
maong eroplano.

Naka-standby na ang C130 alang sa maong mis-yon. (ecbPIABohol)

AFP nagdeklara na usab og ceasefire

NAGDEKLARA na usab kagahapon og ilang kaugalingong bersyon sa ceasefire ang Armed
Forces of the Philippines (AFP) kalabot sa pagbalik sa peace talks tali sa GRP peace panel
ug sa CPP-NPA-NDF sa Oslo, Norway gikan Pebrero 14, hangtud 21.

Matud pa ni AFP Spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta Jr., sama sa deklarasyon sa NPA, ila
usab obserbahan ang ceasefire gikan alas-12:01 sa kadlawon sa Pebrero 14 nga molanat
hangtud alas-11:59 sa tunga’ng gabii sa Pebrero 21.

Bisan pa niini, niingon si Mabanta nga samtang gi-obserbahan ang ceasefire, magpabilin sa
defense mode ang tropa sa gobyerno aron masanta ang posi-bleng panabotahe sa NPA, ang
armed wing sa CPP.

“However this will not preclude our soldiers from taking action in self-defense and to protect
communities from armed threats. Your soldiers will give primacy to the peace process by
employing military capability only when necessitated by security considerations”, matud pa ni
Mabanta.

Gikondena usab ni Mabanta ang pagpaboto sa landmine sa mga NPA sa Maco, Compostela
Valley sa miaging adlaw o sa mismong bisperas sa ceasefire nga nakapatay sa usa ka sibil-
yan samtang unom pa ang nanga-angol apil na sa duha ka sundalo. (ecbPIABohol)