• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Army’s 3rd Infantry Division honored 42 of its soldiers stationed in Negros Island by conferring them with medals, in recognition of their exemplary service.
Maj. Gen. Michael Samson, 3ID commander, conferred medals to 15 Army soldiers of the 94th Infantry Battalion during its founding anniversary on February 18 in Barangay Libas, Isabela, Negros Occidental.
Maj. Gen. Samson recognized them for their outstanding performance in operations against remnants of the Central Negros (CN) 2 and regional strike force Komiteng Rehiyon – Negros (KR-N) in Brgy. Bi-ao, Binalbagan, on January 31.
The encounter resulted in the death of Reynaldo Erecre, secretary of the KR-Negros, and an alias Dante.
The Army soldiers also recovered an M16 rifle from ‘Dante’ and a .45-caliber pistol from Erecre.
To boost their morale, Samson personally led also the awarding of medals to six soldiers of the 62nd Infantry Battalion for their heroism on Feb. 17, at Camp Tirambulo, Barangay McKinley, Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental.
The six soldiers participated in a gunbattle with remnants of the dismantled Central Negros 1 guerilla front in Barangay Binobohan, Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental, which led to the death of two suspected rebels, recovery of an M16 assault rifle, a caliber .45 pistol, and fragmentation grenade, on Jan. 31.
Samson also conferred Military Merit Medals on 12 members of the 47th Infantry Battalion, in recognition of their bravery during an encounter with remnants of Central Negros (CN) 2 in Brgy. Binobohan, Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental, where two rebels were killed, leading to the recovery of two high-powered firearms and a fragmentation grenade.
Nine soldiers of the 79th Infantry Battalion were also honored by Samson for their bravery, during his visit to a military camp in Brgy. Bato, Sagay City, Negros Occidental.
The series of visit of Samson to military camps in Negros Island aims to ensure the welfare of the troops, strengthen their morale, and reaffirm the readiness of each unit in sustaining the campaign against insurgency to maintain peace and security across Negros Island region, a statement from the 3ID Public Affairs Office said.*
