THE commander of the elite Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police has ordered the transfer to Metro Manila of two SAF battalions from Mindanao after they have completed their mission in the region, the Journal Group learned yesterday.

According to Major General Bernard M. Banac, PNP chief General Benjamin C. Acorda Jr. has approved his recommendation to pullout officers and men of their 11th Special Action Battalion (SAB) stationed in Davao region and the 7th SAB based in Sulu as they have already finished their mandated tasks in those areas after more than three years of being deployed there.

He added that the additional SAF battalions would also further reinforce the Metro Manila security especially when there are major events that need their deployment.

The PNP-SAF is also the main force of the PNP to fight any attempts to destabilize the government and the duly-constituted authorities.

“Right after I assumed my position as SAF director last November 20, I assessed the operational readiness of all our battalions and units and discovered that there are some units that are already considered ‘idle,’ already overstaying in their assignments and needs to undergo retraining,” the member of Philippine Military Academy ‘Tanglaw-Diwa’ Class of 1992 said.

The official said the 11th SAB has already completed its job in Davao peninsula since the region has already been declared as ‘insurgency-free’ in September 2022 by the Regional Peace and Order Council 11 following the series of successful peace and order initiatives by the government which led in the dismantling of the remnants of New People’s Army fronts in the area.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. formally declared Davao region composed of Davao City, Davao de Oro, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, Davao Occidental and Davao Oriental as an ‘insurgency-free’ region on October 27, 2022.

Davao region became the 3rd region in the country to be declared as ‘insurgency-free’ next after Region 1 or Ilocos-Pangasinan region and Region 9 or Western Mindanao.

On the other hand, Sulu has been declared by the provincial government and the police and the military as free from the influence of the once deadly Abu Sayyaf Group on September 11, 2023.

“The declaration of Davao region as ‘insurgency-free’ and Sulu province as ‘Abu Sayyaf-free’ gave me the bases to recall our battalions them so that our men could undergo retraining, re-equipping and refitting,” Maj. Gen. Banac, a former PNP spokesperson said.

The SAF’s Davao Battalion was created during the time of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte.

However, Banac said what’s the use of keeping SAF battalions when they are spread so thinly and are ill-equipped.

“As SAF director, it is incumbent for me to address these dysfunctions to improve the morale and welfare of our troops thru many doable things,” he said.

To speed-up the transfer of the two SAF battalions from Davao region and Sulu, Banac said they tapped the assistance of the Philippine Air Force and the Philippine Coast Guard to bring the commandos to Manila thru all their available flights.

SAF MUST BE APOLITICAL

Maj. Gen. Banac said he doesn’t’ want his battalions to overstay in a particular area since their prolonged stay in a region or a province naturally triggers ‘familiarity which breeds contempt.’

It’s the reason why he wants the regular rotation of his battalions and retraining.

By March, there will be another round of rotation.

“As they always say, familiarity breeds contempt, me mga kinakaibigan ng mga local politicians and I don’t want them to be too friendly with others who may use them as literally as their armed groups,” he said.

Maj. Gen. Banac said he has also ordered his men to turn over their existing memorandum of agreements with lot donors to concerned police regional offices.

“You are not there to occupy permanent places, not to erect structures. Kaya you turn over to the regional offices yung titling ng donated lots. Sila ang territorial units, tyayo ay temporary lang,” he told his men.

The official said familiarity with a certain place has even caused problem to the SAF leadership as there are some resistance when particular officers and men are pulled out from a certain area.

“But we are the SAF. How will you complain. Thus every six months,. We need to pull them out, to transfer them to avoid familiarity and prevent letter-request from their benefactors to Camp Crame and even the DILG,” Maj. Gen. Banac said.

He added that he has explained to his men that they are a rapid deployment unit which must be ready to respond to any emergency situation, not to become a permanent fixture in a particular region.

The official said he has also explained to PNP Regional Directors that once they request for the rapid deployment of SAF in case of any crisis in their areas, he is ready to approve it.

“But for the meantime, we must be given time to move, retrain, re-equip, to keep on practicing our skills,” he said.

At the moment, half of the strength of the 11th SAB have already joined the SAF’s Rapid Deployment Battalion and the 3rd SAB at the former SAF headquarter in Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan, Taguig City.

The rest of the commandos forming the 7th SAB are on their way to Bicutan from Zamboanga City.

On the other hand, members of the 1th SAB have arrived in Metro Manila last December and are already undergoing retraining.

“My initial assessment is that those SAF battalions have been overstaying in their former Davao and Sulu assignments. After more than three years of prolonged deployment and after completing their mission, it is but natural that the level of aggressiveness and motivation of our men also go down.

“Yung crisis wala na kaya bumababa din ang expertise. Wala nang training kasi wala nang actual operations kaya tina-tap sa community engagement pero hindi yan yung role ng SAF. From time to time, well and good, ok pero kung yun ang magiging trabaho, it would be detrimental to our operational effectiveness,” Maj. Gen. Banac said.

The official also said being a former SAF trooper himself, he knows how a commando feels if he has been away from his family for three straight years.

“Bumababa ang morale ng mga tao pag ganyan. Saka yung iba, nandito na sa SAF for 20, 15 or 10 years na,” he said.

It was the reason why upon a recommendation from Banac, Gen. Acorda last month approved the transfer to other units of 170 SAF commandos who have been away from their family for long years while battling terrorists and insurgents in the countryside.

The top cop approved the transfer of assignment of the 170 commandos as he and President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. recognized the hard work and bravery of the frontline troops during the National Day of Remembrance for the SAF 44 who were killed on January 25, 2015 while in a secret mission to neutralize then Southeast Asia’s most wanted terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan.

“The transfer of the these battle-hardened police commandos will give them the opportunity be reassigned to other PNP Units stationed closer to their families which is aspect of the moral and welfare policy under the PNP’s 5 focus agenda,” Gen. Acorda said.

Maj. Gen. Banac explained that the 170 SAF troopers recommended for transfer have already completed the required year of tour of duty with SAF.

“Some of them have, in fact, extended their duty with SAF for more than a decade out of personal commitment and passion to serve,’’ he said even as he assured that the transfer of these 170 SAF troopers will not hamper the ongoing operations and programs of SAF, which is currently composed of 15 maneuver battalions with rapid deployment capability to respond to any police emergency or contingency.

The official said although the mission of the SAF is to serve as the ‘rapid deployment force’’ of the PNP to any crisis situation where the competence and skills of the commandos are need, how come that the SAF battalions in Davao and Sulu were deployed there for more than three years without any movement.

“ Look at what happened. We have become territorial forces na lang although we are not. Thus, it time to redirect the SAF,” he said.

Maj. Gen. Banac added that he wants these question answered immediately by his commanders.

“If I order you to move your battalion in 24-hours, can you do it?

“See what you have become. You can’t even move your battalion from here to there, we can’t even move. See how we have become, we are deteriorating and that’s not the SAF I know. Kasi, pag tinawagan ka ng CPNP and ordered to deploy here in 24-hours, you have to. The problem is na-entangled na sa local situation,” he said.

Banac said he can’t also fault many of his predecessors whose stint in the SAF was cut by reassignments.

“Maiksi ang stay ng mga directors and we can’t fault them but we have to return to our old ways, ready for deployment within 24-hours. Pag natapos ang mission, we have to pull out after responding to a crisis, a situation, then go back to camp and retrain and retrain until me mangyayari na namang situation.