903rd Brigade Participates in DepEd’s Reading Month

      Castilla, Sorsogon. The 903^rd Brigade of the Philippine Army participated in the observance of the Reading Month, one of the many programs of the Department of Education to instill in the young students the desire to seek knowledge. Conducted in the morning of November 25, the soldiers read short stories to the students of San Isidro Elementary School in Castilla, Sorsogon and afterwards asked questions to test their comprehension.

Mr Teddy Janola, the school principal, invited the soldiers as well as the college students from the Bicol University in Daraga, Albay who were taking up Bachelor of Science in Peace Studies. They were led by Dr. Herbert B. Rosana, Head of Peace Studies Department of BU and Director of Bicol Consortium for Peace Education and Development (BCPED) and Mrs Gina Oropesa, a department faculty member. Also present was the barangay chairwoman of San Isidro, Hon. Salome Jamores.

San Isidro Elementary School has been under the School of Peace Program of the BCPED as a pilot school since 2000. Dr Rosana explained that the program is supported by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP). Under this program, the school incorporates peace concepts in their lessons in most of the subjects. Teachers inculcate the value of peace to ensure a brighter future for their young pupils as law-abiding citizens. Teachers, at the same time, are also trained on how to reach out to the families of students and other members of the community for a holistic approach to build a culture of peace. They were trained on how to mainstream peace perspectives into the basic education curriculum as well as into school policies, processes and relationships to make them conflict-sensitive and peace promoting.

During an interview with some teachers, they said that they noticed remarkable changes in the behavior of their pupils, who now refrain from saying bad and hurting words to fellow students. They also keep their composure and avoided retaliating when provoked by their classmates. The phrase “Peace Be with You” has also become the popular saying heard around the campus.

Col Felix J Castro Jr, 903^rd Brigade Commander, has promised to support all the activities of the School of Peace. In fact, he has already solicited several books for donation to the school on December 20 during their “Aklat para sa Kapayapaan” program.

Moreover, he plans to solicit the support of Mayor Olive Bermillo of Castilla, the BCPED and DepEd to enroll all public schools of the said municipality in the School of Peace Program as a pilot project in the province of Sorsogon. Dr Rosana has promised to support this and he is already preparing a concept paper. “We must plant the seeds of peace in the fertile minds of these children so that society could eventually reap lasting peace.”, Col Castro said.

Indeed, the youth is the hope of the fatherland.

Army KOs rebels in Masbate firefight

       CAMP ELIAS ANGELES, Pili, Camarines Sur --- Early morning of the much-hyped Pacquiao – Marquez duel last Sunday, a 15-man group of soldiers engaged in a firefight 15 NPA rebels in Sitio Matagbac, Milagros, Masbate at about 6:00 a.m. of that day, drawing a big knockout victory for the Army in the area.

        “While your Army here in Masbate was busy with feeding programs in partnership with the local government, NPA rebels were also busy extorting money from the local villagers,” reported Lt. Col. Julian Pacatan, commanding officer of the 9th Infantry Battalion based in Milagros, Masbate.

        “They (the people) are tired of NPA extortion activities in the area,” Pacatan added.

        Recovered at the site of the encounter were an M16 rifle, one M653 (baby armalite) rifle, two cal.38 pistols, 25 pieces IEDs (improvised explosive device), one rifle grenade, one binocular, one cellular phone, and subversive documents. The soldiers suffered no casualty during the encounter.

        “Bloodstains are scattered everywhere in the encounter site,” said 2nd Lt. Francis Alfie C. Tuazon, the officer who led the 15-man group of soldiers. He added that local villagers pinpointed the location of the NPA extortionists and saw the rebels carrying their wounded or killed comrades.

        During Pacquiao vs Mosley in May last year, the 9th Infantry Battalion also scored knockout victories against NPA rebels in Aroroy when they killed a top rebel official and another rebel during an encounter there where several high-powered firearms were also seized from the retreating rebels.

        Col. Felix Castro Jr, commander of the 903rd Infantry Brigade, directed 9th IB, for pursuit operations. “We will just watch Lt.Col. Pacquiao’s fight later, we’ll do our job first,” referring to the boxing hero as a recently commissioned Army officer. (News)