August 29, 2007, Inquirer, West Mindanao command has new chief, by Julie Alipala,

August 29, 2007, Inquirer, West Mindanao command has new chief, by Julie Alipala,
22:15:00

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines -- Less than two months into a renewed war with Moro rebels in Basilan and Sulu, the military formally changed the leadership of the Western Mindanao Command on Wednesday, released the increased combat pay for soldiers, and announced the pullout of a battalion that suffered the heaviest losses.

Armed Forces Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon presided over the turnover of the Westmincom here to Marine Major General Nelson Allaga.

Allaga replaced Lieutenant General Eugenio Cedo who is retiring on September 6.

The loss of 57 soldiers during pursuit operations against the extremist Abu Sayyaf group since July has drawn criticism, even from with military ranks.

In his speech, Allaga, previously the Philippines Marines commandant, said the military could end the war against the extremist Abu Sayyaf in two months.

"I am humbled by the opportunities given to me but as you can see, additional guidelines were given to me by the chief of staff and it included sustaining the ongoing operations," he said. He said the two-month timetable for the neutralization of the Abu Sayyaf could be realized.

Allaga also announced the official pullout of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 9 from Basilan in line with "normal rotation and retraining." He said the unit suffered heavy losses, losing 25 men since July.

Esperon, in his own speech at the turnover rites, however, denied that he ordered Allaga to end the war in two months. "We are not finishing the war in two months, please disabuse (your mind of) that," he said.

Meanwhile, Esperon announced he brought with him P600,000 in cash to cover the soldiers’ combat pay for July and August. The soldiers were granted an additional P150 from their current P240 per day combat pay.

There are seven battalions in Basilan and eight battalions in Sulu, or about 7,500 soldiers involved in the offensive. The pay raise amounts to about P4,500 in additional allowances per month.

On the announcement that the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team would cover the Basilan-Sulu area, Esperon said they were still discussing whether this would entail changes in their positions.

Esperon said the military operation would be complemented by more development projects and support from US forces on humanitarian assistance missions. With a report from Jeoffrey Maitem