Duterte picks Southern Luzon command chief to lead PH Army
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Wed, 04 Dec 2019 08:50:43 +0000
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has named Lt. Gen. Gilbert Gapay to head the 97,000-strong Philippine Army.
Gen. Noel Clement, Armed Forces chief, announced the appointment on Wednesday.
Gapay is currently commander of the Quezon-based Southern Luzon Command (Solcom).
In a letter signed by Duterte dated December 2, Gapay’s designation will take effect on December 6. He will be replacing Lt. Gen. Macairog Alberto, who is set to retire.
Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo, military spokesman, said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) welcomes the designation of Gapay.
“General Gapay is highly revered and emulated having rose through the military hierarchy,” Arevalo said in a statement, adding Gapay graduated Number 1 in the Philippine Military Academy “Sinagtala” Class of 1986.
“He is a well-rounded general officer who has excelled in the domain of operations, training, and resource management,” Arevalo said.
In his profile provided by the Philippine Army, Gapay was cited for formulating the “Bayanihan Operations Concept,” an alternative approach to addressing insurgency in the country, following the experiences in Agusan provinces in 1988 and the seizure of Camp Abubakar in 2000.
Prior to his current posting at Solcom, Gapay became the commander of the 2nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade in Lanao provinces. He became the deputy commander of the Davao-based Eastern Mindanao Command and concurrent commander of Joint Task Force Haribon, which was formed following the Roxas night market bombing in Davao City in 2016.
Gapay headed the Mechanized Infantry Division in 2017 and headed the Solcom two years later. DEMPSEY REYES