NOV. 4-10, 2010
Col. Tutaan warns soldiers not to go maoy during R & R in the city
The headquarters of the four-brigade, 6,000-strong 10 Infantry Division of the Philippine Army will be transferred from Camp Panacan in Davao City to the military hill camp at Tuboran, Mawab by the coming December and with it comes a huge army expenditure which is expected to further spark the economy of Tagum City.
1003 Brigade commander Col. Domingo Tutaan bared this during his courtesy visit to City Mayor Rey Uy Thursday last week.
He said that huge purchases on foodstuffs and supplies made by the division would practically be made in near Tagum City and not in Davao City.
The 10 ID has some 6,000 troops under its payroll.
The 10 ID came from the split of the Zamboanga-based Southern Command (Southcom), the largest unified command of the military in Mindanao, made by former President Arroyo in late 2006 for more effective troop management and control. It is in charge for the Southeastern Mindanao.
The Tuboran Hill at the centre point along Mawab zigzag cliff has been a headquarters home of various army infantry brigades and batallions since the early 80s.
Col. Tutaan bared that the 10 ID has the four brigades under its command- the 1001 Infantry Brigade covering Compostela Valley, the 1002 IB for Davao del Sur, the 1003 IB under him and for Davao del Norte and the rural areas of Davao City, and the 701 IB for Davao Oriental.
Under Col. Tutaan’s 1003 IB are the 60 Infantry Batallion and 3rd Special Force for Davao del Norte and Laak, Compostela Valley, and the 84 IB and 69 IB for Davao City.
A batallion is composed of some 450 soldiers, and Tutaan alone has some 1,350 men under his brigade, which is in Asuncion.
Besides the foodstuffs and supplies that would be procured from the city, armymen coming from different locations would most likely spend for their rest and recreation (R & R) during off-duty hours in the city which has lively sexy pubs, disco, videoke and drinking joints at night.
But already Col Tutaan has warned soldiers that army officials will not tolerate and will deal sternly soldiers who make misdemeanors in public while making R & R in Tagum City and other towns.
He conveyed to Mayor Uy that he has been reminding his soldiers that if somebody among them makes misdemeanor in public and violates a law the erring soldier should be put behind prison bars by the police and the army will pursue administrative charges against him.
“If it is line of duty, we will enforce the Articles of War,”Tutaan said.
He added that he “(doesn’t) respect affidavit of desistance” made by civilian victims as facilitated by the erring soldier.
He also said that if a soldier is killed not in line of duty or due to bad demeanor or say inside a cockpit the army will treat it not a special case but a police matter.
Both Mayor Uy and Col. Tutaan briefly recalled a case before in the city that soldiers were put behind bars by the police after they went wild while on R & R but their companions came with their army tank in trying to rescue the jailed soldiers, to which Col. Tutaan laughed off saying he would never tolerate such the same situation to happen.
A few residents in the city recalled in separate interviews that it happened during the late 80s at a time when Vice Gov. Victorio “Baby” Suaybaguio Jr was still the municipal mayor of Tagum. Scalawag soldiers from the 64 IB based in Asuncion were apprehended by the local police as they were suspected to be high on drugs while on weekend merrymaking in the city, but their companions tried to make a rescue bringing a chemite tank and even straffing the municipal hall. The police held ground resulting to tense holdout situation and public panic. The situation was ultimately defused by then Gov. Prospero Amatong of the undivided Davao del Norte.
On the other hand, Col. Tutaan also informed Mayor Uy that he has been organizing peace and development teams composed of his armymen and other barangay stakeholders who will do community projects and undertakings under his brigade-initiated Peace and Development Outreach Program.
He said that the New People’s Army has further thinned out due to battle defeats, surrenders and demoralization and what has been left are small mobile rebel units, “so instead of the combat operations before, we will only react to the presence of armed groups” as reported by the people.
He said that what is good now is that people in the barangays are already reporting to them through text messages.
“From combat orientation before, we are now focusing our troops to our emphasis and shift of paradigm … that a good soldier is not stuff made out of his M16 rifle but out of his discipline, courage and zeal to do teamwork for the good of the community,” Tutaan said in an interview right after the courtesy call. (Rural Urban News/Cha Monforte)
Filed under: 1002 IB for Davao del Sur, 3rd Special Force, 60 Infantry Batallion, 701 IB for Davao Oriental, 84 IB and 69 IB for Davao City, Col. Domingo Tutaan, tuboran mawab, 1002 IB for Davao del Sur, 3rd Special Force, 60 Infantry Batallion, 701 IB for Davao Oriental, 84 IB and 69 IB for Davao City, Col. Domingo Tutaan, tuboran mawab
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