Bongbong Marcos appoints Army exec as new Westmincom chief

Maj. Gen. Steve Crespillo. (Photos from the Philippine Army)

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. has appointed Maj. Gen. Seve Crespillo as the 17th Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) chief, the Department of National Defense (DND) said on Saturday.

According to the DND, the incoming Westmincom commander also sits as the vice commander of the Philippine Army and graduated from Philippine Military Academy Class 1990 Bigkis-Lahi.

His current duties include “assuming as chairperson in various boards and committees of the Philippine Army and performing oversight functions on its key policies, plans, and programs.”

Crespillo will replace Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, who was designated as the commander of Westmincom in January this year.

Galido served two positions when he was promoted as commanding general of the Philippine Army while awaiting official pronouncement from the President on the designation of commander for Westmincom.

Prior to this appointment, Crespillo also served as a commander of the 501st Infantry Brigade, where he led troops to combat local communist armed conflict in Apayao and Cagayan.

He also became the chief-of-staff and assistant division commander for Reservist and Retiree Affairs of the 6th Infantry Division and acting commander of the 601st Infantry Brigade.

Aside from these, he was also the Westmincom Unified Command Staff chief and oversaw operations conducted in the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Westmincom has jurisdiction over areas where the government is mainly fighting against Islamic extremists, mainly the provinces of the Bangsamoro region.

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