190 New Soldiers Join The 3ID

Some one hundred ninety (190) candidate soldiers were sworn in as Privates into the Armed Forces of the Philippines by Major General Vicente M Porto, Commander of the Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry (Spearhead) Division during the graduation ceremony of Candidate Soldiers (Matikas) Class 209-09 held in Camp Peralta, Jamindan, Capiz on Thursday, Dec 17, 2009.

The class started with 200 able-bodied recruits who began their training last July. They hail from different parts of Panay, Guimaras, and Negros islands. Their training consisted of three (3) months honing their basic military skills and another two (2) months of application through the Jungle Warfare and Mountain Operations Course at the 33,100 ha Military Reservation, Jamindan, Capiz.

Maj Gen Porto, the Guest of Honor and Speaker of the ceremony, congratulated the graduates in his speech. He urged them to be loyal and serve to protect and to enhance the name of the Armed Forces of the Philippines particularly the Philippine Army. He also underscored the role of the new privates as catalysts for peace and development in our country. "As new soldiers, you must posses the qualities of SARS- a combination of Skills, Attitude, Responsibility and Spiritual Guidance," Porto stressed.

For this year alone, the 3ID has graduated a total of 286 soldiers after being given a ceiling of 300 for recruitment. These soldiers will be distributed to our different subordinate units to replenish their ranks and to maintain our effective strength so that we may continue to perform our mission in Western Visayas. There are still currently 300 fresh recruits undergoing training in Camp Peralta who are divided into two Candidate Soldier Courses: CSC Class 218 with 100 recruits and CSC Class 231 with 200 recruits. They are expected to complete their training by April 2010.

The Spearhead Division takes pride in producing professional and service-oriented soldiers. This is why so many of our fellow citizens are inspired to take up the profession of arms. This is shown by the increase in the turnout of applicants for this year’s recruitment. Your army is optimistic that in our future recruitment efforts we can hope to entice more applicants with professional skills as we continue to enhance our technology as well as our capabilities. (by 1LT MARK ANDREW T POSADAS PA) /MP