“Gentle Giant” is now WesMinCom chief

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/25 June) -- The "Gentle Giant" now leads the powerful Armed Forces of the Philippines Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) in Zamboanga City.

Maj. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino, affectionately called "Gentle Giant" by peace advocates, will assume command of the Wesmincom on July 16.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., said Dolorfino will take the place of Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga, a fellow Marine general, who will reach the mandatory retirement age of 56 on July 16.

Dolorfino and Allaga are graduates of the Philippine Military Academy class in 1976. Both of them belong to the Philippine Marines. Their classmates include Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Victor Ibrado, AFP vice chief Lt.. Gen. Rodrigo Maclang, AFP deputy chief Vice Admiral Emilio Marayag and Navy chief Vice Admiral Ferdinand Golez.

Teodoro said that as Wesmincom chief, Dolorfino will be in charge of military operations against various threat groups in Western Mindanao, principally the Abu Sayyaf and rogue elements of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Dolorfino is a Muslim convert and is married to Mary Ann, a relative of Nur Misuari, former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and founder of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

Dolorfino was held hostage for two days by the MNLF led by Ustadz Habier Malik in February 2007 after he went to their camp in Panamao, Sulu to dialogue on the problems on the implementation of the 1996 peace agreement between the government and the group. He was then acting as co-chair of the GRP-MILF Ad Hoc Joint Action Group.

He is one of a few Muslim officers in the Armed Forces holding a key command post.

“Military officers must know the historical roots of the conflict in Mindanao. Simply thinking that this is a simple peace and order problem will be a big mistake,” Dolorfino said in a January 2005 interview with MindaNews.

The Ilonggo considers Mindanao his home. He has spent 27 years in Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, and Basilan. A helicopter pilot as well, he was based in Zamboanga for a year, flying combatants in and out of battlefields.

Dolorfino’s unconventional military style has earned him praises from local government officials, religious leaders, and nongovernment organizations in Mindanao.

Many still remember his brigade’s stint in 2003 in Pikit, North Cotabato, then site of battles between the government and Moro rebels. “Dolorfino help eased the tension in Pikit. It helped that he understood the sensibilities of the Muslims,” said Fr. Roberto Layson, then parish priest in Pikit.

When he was in command in Pikit, the 2nd Marine Brigade was never attacked or ambushed by the guerrillas. This wasn’t the case in the past. “The Muslims [in the area] did not trust soldiers. They were used to see soldiers shooting, harassing them when they go to the mosques to pray,” Dolorfino said.

Dolorfino also earned the respect of the Muslims when he ordered battle-hardened Marines to fix an abandoned mosque in Barangay Gli-gli, a remote village in Pikit.

“The residents were surprised at first. They could not believe that I am a Muslim,” he narrated. He later ordered his men to help the villagers clean other mosques and harvest the coconut farms that were abandoned at the height of the fighting.

Dolorfino told MindaNews that he wants to repeat what he has done in PIkit in other provinces in Mindanao. He knows that Western Mindanao is tougher to deal with: Basilan and Sulu islands are home bases of the Abu Sayyaf.

“We will make one small step at a time. Maybe the residents will embrace peace and denounce the violence,” Dolorfino said. “We will be there to help them find peace.” (Froilan Gallardo/MindaNews)