The Philippine Navy (PN) has accorded an arrival ceremony to one of its marine battalion units that returned from its mission in the Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom) area of responsibility after a ten-year tour of duty that began in 2010.
Vice Admiral Giovanni Carlo Bacordo, Navy Flag Officer in Command, personally welcomed the members of the 9th Marine Battalion (9MBn) as they disembarked from BRP Bacolod City at Captain Salvo Pier in Sangley Point, Cavite on Thursday.
Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Mark Anthony Arabe, the 9MBn arrived from their deployment Zamboanga City and in the island provinces of Tawi-Tawi and Sulu.
In his remarks, Bacordo recognized the "successful" deployment of the 9MBn as a testament and proof to the capability and competence of the Philippine Marine Corps to respond to emerging security challenges.
He said the battalion had been instrumental in a wide array of security and combat operations, support to law enforcement, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), among others.
Among the notable accomplishments of the battalion were the neutralization of Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) terrorists; interception of smuggled lumbers, illegal drugs, human trafficking victims and illegal immigrants; and rescue of more than a hundred passengers and crew members of various ill-fated vessels.
"In order to sustain these accomplishments, it needs to level up to continue to be a proficient Marine operating force as every Marine battalion's job is about to get harder due to the rapidly changing, complex, simultaneous, and overlapping security challenges," Bacordo said.
Major General Nathaniel Casem, Commandant of the Philippine Marine Corps, said the troops will be subjected to re-training to "upgrade them into a unit capable to perform mission-essential tasks."
The 9MBn is also being eyed to be the first Marine amphibious-ready unit that will be attached to the Fleet-Marine Ready Force, Casem added.