AFP denies Task Force Davao disbandment
THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday, February 6, denied reports on the alleged disbandment of Task Force Davao (TFD).
The reported disbandment of the task force cropped up on February 4, days after former president Rodrigo Duterte made a proposal to split Mindanao from the Philippines.
On Sunday, the former president’s spokesman Herminio ‘’Harry’’ Roque Jr. floated insinuations on a Facebook post that TFD had been disbanded. “I have received reports that Task Force Davao would be disbanded,” said Roque.
Task Force Davao was established on April 16, 2003 following a terrorist attack in Sasa Airport and Sasa Wharf. One of the tasks of the unit was to protect Davao City from threats, criminality and other forms of lawlessness.
The task force gained prominence upon the ascension of the then-Davao City mayor to power.
The AFP categorically denied it received instructions to scrap the military unit.
Lt. Gen. Greg Almerol, chief of the Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom) that has jurisdiction over the task force, dispelled the information.
“There are no instructions whatsoever coming from higher headquarters to remove Task Force Davao from its present mandate,” Almerol said.
He said the task force “will continue to do its mission of providing all means to secure the people in its joint operational area. All the units under Eastmincom are vital to accomplish the given tasks.”
AFP spokesman Col. Xerxes Trinidad shared the position of Almerol.
“We stand for one Philippines. From that particular statement, it is clear what the stand of the AFP is,” Trinidad said.
AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. visited Davao City, particularly the headquarters of Eastmincom over the weekend, directing troops to assist communities in the region battered by weeklong flooding affecting almost millions of residents.
“This generation of soldiers are very professional,” said Brawner.
“So let us remain focused on our jobs, and let’s be clear in our mission. We should love our services, let us try to be the best soldiers that we can be, and be professionals always. Let us be united. We should be a strong AFP, because if we have a strong AFP, we will have a strong Philippines,” he added.