Militant solons oppose appointment of new AFP chief Año

Lt. General Eduardo Año. Noy Morcoso lll/INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

Militant lawmakers on Wednesday asked President Rodrigo Duterte to reconsider the appointment of newly-installed Lieutenant General Eduardo Año as the chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, citing his supposed long records of human rights violations.

“We urge President Duterte to reconsider this appointment and to reassess his recent decisions involving the military and their implications. The government should uphold, protect and defend the fundamental human rights of Filipinos, especially the marginalized and oppressed,” ACT Teachers Party-List Representatives Antonio Tinio and France Castro.

Año took over the 125,000-strong AFP at the change of command ceremony at Camp Aguinaldo on Wednesday. Duterte was the guest of honor and presiding officer of the ceremonies.

Before he was named Army chief in July 2015, Año led the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, which covers Davao region and parts of Soccsksargen. It was during his stint there when New People’s Army commander Leoncio Pitao alias Kumander Parago, the most prominent rebel leader in Southern Mindanao, was killed by the military in an encounter in Paquibato district.

Año, a seasoned intelligence officer, was the former chief of the Intelligence Service of the AFP when security forces arrested Benito and Wilma Tiamzon, leaders of the Communist Party of the Philippines.

He was also linked to the disappearance of activist Jonas Burgos but was eventually cleared of the charges.

“When he signed Año’s appointment papers, the President might as well have signed the death warrant for the search for justice and accountability for these human rights violations,” the solons said. JE