AFP Rebels In War Vs. Drugs
AFP rebels in war vs drugs
20 freed Magdalo prove there’s life after Oakwood
By Arlyn dela Cruz
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:37:00 04/13/2008
MANILA, Philippines—A number of former rebel soldiers, their prospects and possibilities now wider and more challenging, are proving that there is life after the “Oakwood mutiny.”
Eight of 53 ex-officers pardoned and released last December from the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Custodial Center in Fort Bonifacio have moved on and are reinventing themselves as “revolutionary anti-illegal drugs agents.” They are now undergoing training at the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Academy in Tagaytay City.
PDEA Director General Dionisio Santiago, a former AFP chief of staff, said 20 ex-rebel officers were actually undergoing training but the first eight would see action ahead of the others.
“They are young, courageous, idealistic men who have something to prove,” Santiago told this reporter. “They say they are against corruption of any kind. It’s time to put that to better use against what could be the biggest threat to national stability and security—the multibillion-dollar illegal drugs trade.”
The new postings of the eight ex-officers (four each from the Air Force and the Army) carry the approval of President Macapagal-Arroyo. In a memo dated March 27 and signed by Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Ms Arroyo ordered the “[putting to] good use [of] the talents and training” of these men who were part of the “Magdalo” group that tried to topple her administration in July 2003.
The 53 men pleaded guilty to and were subsequently convicted in April 2007 of violation of Articles of War.
Mostly first and second lieutenants, they were sentenced by a general court-martial to dismissal from the service and prison terms of seven years that was reduced to four years due to “mitigating circumstances.”
Ms Arroyo granted them executive clemency and further commuted their remaining prison terms, allowing them to spend the Christmas holidays with their families as free men.
4 reasons
Part of the former rebels’ entry process is the taking of the mandatory civil service examination.
But why take in these former mutineers as PDEA agents?
Santiago counted four reasons: Their motivation, experience, rawness and idealism.
It was Santiago who had recommended to the President the recruitment of selected Magdalo members into the PDEA, saying that their experience “suits the situation” of the agency.
“With the huge tasks of the PDEA and the multimillion-dollar resources of established illegal drugs syndicates, what we need are men who have fertile minds, who are risk-takers and definitely not kibitzers, those who will show us real action and hopefully prove to all of us that they are indeed incorruptible,” Santiago said.
During this reporter’s interview with Santiago, a Magdalo member, former 1st Lt. Lawrence San Juan, entered the room with escorts.
Upon seeing San Juan, Santiago commented: “His rebelliousness leans to the Left, and we have to see if he can help in the PDEA. There will be preliminary talks, but one thing I can assure is that all the talents and training of these former Magdalo members will be used for good and truly patriotic purposes.”
San Juan is among the 22 Magdalo members, including Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, who are still being tried on coup d’etat charges. He was recently granted bail by Makati Judge Oscar Pimentel.
Nine other Magdalo members were convicted last week of the crime of coup d’etat and announced on Friday that they intended to seek executive clemency from Ms Arroyo.
1st batch
The initial eight ex-rebel officers in the PDEA will be deployed in key regions, including the National Capital Region (NCR).
They are Julius Navales and Emerson Margate, both former 1st lieutenants, and Jigger Montallana, Ryan Quisai, Jeoffrey Tacio, Joel Plaza, Archie Grande and Adrian Alvariño, all former 2nd lieutenants.
According to Santiago, most of the ex-rebel officers have received job offers as security officers of corporations and foreign mining companies operating in the Philippines.
“But they told me they want to continue serving their country, and I believe them,” Santiago said, adding:
“I believe that’s what they really want to accomplish—prove to the Filipino people that they are not just rebels without a cause. Sayang naman, di ba (It would be a shame, wouldn’t it)? I believe these former Magdalo officers will make the PDEA strong.”
Gov’t service over job offers
A telecommunications giant offered Navales a job as security supervisor in the NCR and Luzon area, as did a mining company based in Mindanao, but he decided to follow his heart.
Montallana also received offers to be a security officer for a Makati-based multinational, but after a deep reflection on what to do with his life after Oakwood, he took the path where he was certain to find fulfillment.
Their choice was the same: Government service.
Navales, who, as an Army officer, served in combat and intelligence operations in Basilan, told this reporter that it was his burning desire to continue his service to the country.
“Director Santiago is right when he said we have something to prove,” Navales said. “Personally, I feel this is my chance to redeem myself from other people’s negative impressions when we went to Oakwood in 2003.”
Asked to explain his decision to join the PDEA, Montallana said: “The corporate world actually pays more, but a man’s happiness is not in money. I’m still looking to serve through a government agency, where you can do something good for society despite a meager salary.”
Montallana was formerly assigned as deputy intelligence officer of the Air Force’s Tactical Operations Command in Mactan, Cebu.
The trade in illegal drugs is not exactly strange to him, having been once assigned to head antidrug operations in Cebu.
One raid in Balamban—where he busted a marijuana shipment worth P1.4 million and three persons were apprehended—earned him a Bronze Cross.
Yes and no
The inevitable question was asked of both Navales and Montallana: Was the Oakwood mutiny, where they denounced corruption in the military and the government, and demanded the resignation of the President and top AFP officers, a mistake?
They said it was both “a mistake and not a mistake.”
Navales put it this way: “The means were wrong but the ideals that we fought for were not. Whether others will admit it or not, what we did was a big contribution to change.
“But as far as our personal lives are concerned, it was wrong. Our families suffered, and we lost our career as soldiers.”
For Montallana, it worked both ways—good and bad:
“Because of Oakwood, little by little, some ills of society were raised and are now being addressed by the government.
“But Oakwood was a mistake from the point of view of its impact on the economy.”
Nevertheless, the two men, both graduates of the Philippine Military Academy, said they had no regrets being part of the Magdalo.
They also said that they had been trained at the PMA to make a decision, whether good or bad.
Said Montallana: “At least we made a decision, and we have suffered the consequences of our decision.
“But come to think of it, perhaps it was a blessing in disguise. If I were not at Oakwood then, and I was not a member of the Magdalo, I would not have made it to the PDEA.”
Fight vs illegal drugs
Because of his early exposure to the antidrug campaign in Cebu, Montallana sees the Philippine drug problem as “very disturbing.”
“The drug abusers are getting younger and younger,” he said. “I am happy and honored to be part of the PDEA and to be trusted again by the government in its crusade for a drug-free Philippines.”
Navales said the renewed trust in him and the chance to serve in the government through the PDEA was the biggest challenge of his professional career.
“We are good officers and we will show in our work in the PDEA that our greatest motivation is service to the country,” he said.
Navales promised that he and his comrades would not take bribes: “It’s a fight against the syndicates. It would be so embarrassing if we keep shouting against corruption and then we get bought. We will do good. We will.”
Santiago expressed confidence that these words would turn into reality in the government’s antidrug campaign.
“As I have said, these men have something to prove after Oakwood. Let us give them the break and let them prove themselves worthy of their words and principles,” Santiago said.
