PRESIDENT Duterte has designated an Army general as commander of the AFP Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom), which is leading the fight against the New People’s Army and other armed groups in four Luzon regions.
Maj. Gen. Ernesto Torres Jr. will succeed Maj. Gen. Andrew Costelo, who has been serving as acting Nolcom commander for over a month now since the retirement of former Nolcom commander Lt. Gen. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos.
Costelo is serving as acting Nolcom commander in concurrent capacity as commander of the 7th Infantry Division in Nueva Ecija. Costelo is due to relinquish the top Nolcom post to Torres Monday next week.
Duterte also designated a senior Navy officer as commander of the AFP Western Command (Wescom) based in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
Rear Adm. Alberto Carlos, the current commander of the Navy’s Philippine Fleet, will take over from Vice Adm. Ramil Roberto Enriquez, who is due to reach the retirement age of 56 Monday next week.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed the appointment of Carlos as head of Wescom, which is in charge of military operations in Palawan and in disputed areas in the West Philippine Sea in the South China Sea.
Torres, a member of the Philippine Military Academy class 1989, is currently the commander of the 10th Infantry Division based in Davao de Oro. His successor as 10th ID commander has yet to be announced.
Before taking over as 10th ID commander in March last year, Torres was commander of the Civil Relations Service, the military’s psychological warfare arm. Before that, he served as deputy commander of the AFP Eastern Mindanao Command in Davao City.
He also previously served as commander of the 1003rd Brigade, Army’s assistant chief of staff for personnel, chief of the Army public affairs office, and AFP public affairs office during the time of AFP chief Gen. Alexander Yano from 2008 to 2009.
As Nolcom commander, Torres will supervise all ground, sea and air operations in Ilocos region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon and Cordillera Administrative Region.
He will also be in charge of protecting the country’s interest at Scarborough Shoal, also known as Panatag Shoal, about 124 nautical miles from Zambales. The shoal is currently under the control of China since a standoff with Philippine ships in 2012.
Carlos, a member of PMA class 1989, took over as the Fleet commander in April last year. Before that, he was the AFP deputy chief of staff for logistics.
He was the chairperson of the Technical Inspection and Acceptance Committee in the Frigate Acquisition Project. The project involved the acquisition of the now BRP Jose Rizal and Antonio Luna from the Hyundai Heavy Industries, a Korean shipbuilder.
Carlos once served as commander of the Naval Combat Engineering Brigade, Deputy Commander of the Naval Sea Systems Command, Assistant Chief of Naval Staff for Operations, Assistant Chief of Naval Staff for Logistics.
