Army Grounds General in Corruption Case, Begins Probe

The Philippine Army has begun the pre-trial investigation on Major General Jose T. Barbieto on allegations of personnel and resource mismanagement. Following an order from the Ombudsman to suspend the general, he was previously relieved as the commander of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division effective March 6, 2008 to give way to a just and impartial investigation.

The conduct of the pre-trial investigation, which normally precedes a General Court Martial, necessitates that those accused be arrested and confined. Hence, the Commanding General of the Philippine Army, Lt Gen Alexander Yano, ordered the arrest and confinement of MGen Barbieto and his co-accused, SSg Roseller Echipare on March 13, 2008. As of March 18, 2008, they are already confined and restricted in quarters at Headquarters Philippine Army in Fort Bonifacio and placed under the custody of the Camp Commander, BGen Ricardo Morales. The restriction shall take effect until such time that their cases are resolved.

Major General Barbieto is being investigated for possible violations of Article of War 55 (Officer Making Unlawful Enlistment), Article of War 96 (Conduct Unbecoming an Officer and a Gentleman), and Article of War 97 (Conduct Prejudicial to Good Order and Military Discipline). SSg Echipare is also being investigated for similar offenses.

As a consequence, on March 13 an Inspection Team from the Headquarters Philippine Army, Fort Bonifacio proceeded to the Headquarters of the 4th Infantry Division (4ID) in Cagayan De Oro City, to validate the enlistment, recruitment and re-instatement of soldiers who allegedly paid their way off to re-join or enter the military service. The team reviewed and re-evaluated each case to determine the regularity of their entry into the military. Admission into the military without going through the prescribed process is considered fraudulent and may result to separation from the service.

The inspection was completed on March 15 and a corresponding report was submitted to the Commanding General of the Philippine Army. The inspection report was divided into two, a report on the 150 candidate soldiers currently undergoing training at 4ID and another report on 133 Privates who were recently enlisted in to the army.

Of the 150 candidate soldiers, 97 were found to be not qualified, 20 were conditionally passed while 33 were considered to be eligible to undergo training to eventually become regular soldiers.

On the other hand, 87 of the 133 new Privates were found to be unqualified while 46 were conditionally passed.

The appointment orders of the candidate soldiers and Privates who were found to be not qualified were cancelled. Although their continuous stay with the military has been terminated, they were not barred from reapplying to the succeeding candidate soldier recruitment provided that they satisfy all requirements.

Those who were conditionally passed are required to complete their lacking requirements before they will be allowed to remain in the military service or training, as in the case of the candidate soldiers.

The Philippine Army is serious in implementing reforms within the organization. Lt. Gen Alexander P. Yano, Philippine Army’s Commanding General assured that there will be no whitewash and cover up and due process will always be observed. #

LT. COL. ERNESTO C. TORRES, JR.

Army Spokesman/Chief Public Affairs

Tel. No.: (02) 892-1693

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