ARMY chief Lt. Gen. Roy Galido yesterday said the number of Army soldiers in Basilan will not be downsized following the declaration of the province as free from the clutches of the terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group.
In a press briefing at the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Galido said six Army battalions in Basilan will remain in the island province to sustain peace and to ensure development will con-tinue.
The province was declared ASG-free on Monday, during rites led by presidential adviser on peace, reconciliation and unity Carlito Galvez; and Antonio Lagdameo, the Special Assistant to the President.
Galido, who previously served as commander of the military’s Western Mindanao Command, said the declaration of Basilan as ASG-free was long overdue.
“That declaration of (Basilan as) ASG-free has long been delayed. As you know, I’ve been the commander of the Western Mindanao Command” said Galido.
“We just had to follow the procedure of declaring it (as ASG-free),” he also said.
It was in Basilan where the Abu Sayyaf in the 1990s reached the peak strength of around 1,000 men. It was blamed for a number of atrocities, including kidnappings, beheadings, and bomb-ings.
“Now, will we downsize the army units there? No,” said Galido.
“It (number of troops) will remain because we still have this role of sustaining the peace which is very important,” he stressed.
He said the number of troops needs to be maintained in the province to “make sure develop-ment will flow in that area.”
