Cagayan de Oro City 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez (Rep. Rodriguez's Facebook page)

Cagayan de Oro City 2nd district Rep. Rufus Rodriguez is prodding Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. to finally put an end to hazing and hazing-like activities in the Philippine Military Academy (PMA).

“I know that Gen. Brawner actively pushed a campaign against hazing during his time in PMA. He should now impose a strict ban,” he said, noting that Brawner was a former PMA commandant of cadets.

Rodriguez issued the statement following the conviction of three former cadets in the Sept. 18, 2019 hazing death of plebe Darwin Dormitorio.

On Friday, Aug. 16, the Baguio City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 5 convicted cadets Shalimar Imperial Jr. and Felix Lumbag Jr. of murder and sentenced them the penalty of reclusion perpetua or imprisonment of up to 40 years.

Another cadet, Julius Carlo Tadena, was convicted for hazing, receiving the same reclusion perpetua.

“Kudos to the RTC judge for finally delivering justice in the case of Darwin, a constituent of mine in [Cagayan de Oro]. I wished though that justice would have [been] swifter,” Rodriguez said.

The veteran lawmaker said the conviction of three former cadets should prompt Brawner to ban hazing “inside and outside” PMA.

He stressed that the AFP chief should hold the PMA superintendent, commandant of cadets, and junior officers in charge of cadets responsible for any hazing activity. “As a lesson from the death of my constituent and to prevent any harm on any trainee,” he added.

Following Dormitorio’s death, then-PMA superintendent Lt. Gen. Ronnie Evangelista and commandant of cadets Brig. Gen. Bartolome Bacarro resigned from their respective positions, citing “command responsibility.”

However, the AFP would later promote Bacarro, which Rodriguez strongly opposed in the Commission on Appointments (CA). The CA subsequently approved the confirmation of the promotion. 

Rodriguez said that if it had been up to him, the PMA officers directly responsible for the hazing of Dormitorio would have been included in the criminal complaint and convicted alongside the three cadets.

“Clearly, there was negligence on their part, including military doctors at PMA. They should have noticed signs that something was wrong with Darwin from the time his tormentors kicked and punched him on Aug. 19 up to the time of his death a month later,” he explained.

According to reports, Dormitorio was taken to the PMA hospital where he stayed for more than a week up to Aug. 27 for multiple soft tissue hematomas on his abdomen and back and a partial burn on his left shoulder.

On Sept. 6, he once again entered the PMA hospital for respiratory tract infection and soft tissue contusion in his chest.

“Darwin’s injuries and ailments should have alarmed PMA doctors and his immediate superiors, who should have reported the matter to PMA officials,” Rodriguez said.

The congressman noted that under the Anti-Hazing Law, “an organization with direct supervision of cadets’ or students’ activities, and those with knowledge of hazing, but who fail to take action are as guilty as direct hazing participants”.

20 years old at the time of his death, Dormitorio would have graduated from the country's premier military training institution last year.