SIPALAY City – About 100 reservists of the 81st Marine Battalion in Western Visayas conducted an amphibious raid capability demonstration at Poblacion Beach in this southern Negros Occidental city.
“We conducted this for the seamless integration of our reservists with the regular force, so that they will become a mirror image of our regular force,” said Brigadier General Arthur Biyo, commander of the Naval Reserve Command.
Biyo said Sunday’s capability demonstration, initiated by the Naval Forces Central, was a culmination of the several months of training that the reservists underwent.
“We train them so that in the event of war, invasion or rebellion, we can mobilize them to assist the Armed Forces,” he stressed. “They showed their capability to neutralize possible threats to our security.”
During the activity, the reservists initiated a response to a security threat with support from the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council rescue unit, Bureau of Fire Protection, Police Regional Office’s Mobile Force Battalion, and Sipalay City police station.
Vice Admiral Robert Empedrad, flag officer-in-command of the Philippine Navy, in a speech read by Biyo during the program, said the reserve force are reliable partners that their troops could rely on in times of war.
“They are Philippine Navy’s source of confidence in facing our challenges head-on, assured by the continuing presence of a highly-reliable competent and ready reserve force who can always back us up whatever the need may be,” Empedrad added.
Lieutenant Colonel Francis Raymund Martin Yulo, commanding officer of the 81st Marine Battalion Reserve, said the demonstration illustrated the capability of the Philippine Navy through the reservists.
Yulo said the activity was held for the first time in Negros Occidental. Sipalay was chosen as the site of the demonstration it being a thriving tourist destination, he added. (With a report from PNA/PN)