Bongabon, Nueva Ecija—The anti-insurgency campaign in Central Luzon has taken a new shift with the assumption of a new regional military commander who vowed to take to a new level the government’s approach in ending the communist-spawned armed movement.
“We will tirelessly offer and extend the hand of peace, but we will also be fearless and relentless in running after those who will choose to stick to terror in furthering their beliefs,” said Col. Andrew D. Costelo as he assumed the leadership of the Army’s 703rd Infantry “Agila” Brigade based in Bongabon, Nueva Ecija.
“This communist madness propagated by Jose Ma. Sison and his local group of old, tired and weary communist apparatchik must be stopped. As this ideology gasps for breath, it’s time to send this demagoguery to its death bed,” Costelo added, whose operational area covers the whole of Region 3.
Costelo, a Cebuano and a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1990, was a former chief of staff of the 9th Infantry Division (9th ID) based in Bicol region before he was tapped to take the helm of the 703rd Infantry Brigade, succeeding Brig. Gen. Rowen S. Tolentino.
With the 9th ID, Costelo lent his expertise in crafting of “Trangkilo,” the division’s five-year campaign plan against the rebels beginning in 2017 that degraded the capability of the Bicol Regional Party Committee of the NPA, including the declaration of Sorsogon as a “conflict-manageable and ready for development” province.
A veteran intelligence officer having served with the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Costelo also oversaw numerous combat and intel-driven operations, resulting in the neutralization of top level officials and members of the communist movement in Bicol region.
Costelo also served as the commander of the 2nd Infantry Battalion and the 22nd Infantry Battalion in Bicol in his junior years.
In assuming the reign of the 703rd Brigade, Costelo said he will carry out the military’s holistic approach in ending the communist-inspired insurgency at the intersection of left-hand and right-hand approaches, but with more lethal effect.
“We will seek peace and we will encourage rebels to join us in this undertaking, but for those who wanted to sow terror, we will be unrelenting in our campaign against them,” he said, adding he would further intensify the brigade’s partnerships with Central Luzon residents, local officials and non-governmental organizations.
“We will be servant warriors and thinking warriors,” Costelo said.