New battalion deployed to Masbate for poll peacekeeping

A new battalion was activated by the Philippine Army to help maintain the peace during the elections and run after communist insurgents in Masbate. The 85th Infantry Battalion, headed by Col. Lope Dagoy, is composed of 250 officers and men, 190 of whom served with United Nations peacekeeping teams in Haiti and Liberia. Dagoy, the former commander of the Philippine peacekeeping force in Haiti, arrived last month with the battalion from the Caribbean nation. Other members came from the Army's 2nd Infantry Battalion. The new battalion "will be able to run after partisan armed groups in Masbate in line with the AFP’s goal of ensuring honest, orderly and peaceful elections," Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public affairs office chief Lt. Col. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos, quoting Dagoy. “They will now be assigned to Masbate as part of the military’s duty to assist the Comelec in the upcoming elections, applying the principles of peacekeeping they learned from their previous assignment," added Burgos. The battalion was sent off by Army vice commander Maj. Gen. Romulo Supapo from the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio. They will proceed to Sangley Point in Cavite where a Navy ship will take them to Masbate. The new battalion is intended to "address the demands for additional maneuver units that will boost and sustain the military’s operational tempo in attaining decisive victory against the communist terrorists and assure a peaceful and credible conduct of the May 2010 elections in the province of Masbate," Army spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres said. The Philippine military has vowed to crush the communist New People's Army on or before President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo steps down on June 30. The new battalion has boosted the Army's confidence that "it would be able to sustain the winning stance in the fight against insurgency with the end goal of delivering lasting peace and stability in the country," Torres added. Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales have expressed concerns regarding developments in Masbate owing to election-related killings. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV