By Christopher Lloyd Caliwan/Philippine News Agency
MANILA — A total of nine officials of the Philippine National Police (PNP), including its spokesperson, were promoted to the next higher rank.
In a letter dated July 17, President Rodrigo Duterte approved the promotion to Major General (two-star rank) of Brigadier General Timoteo Pacleb and promoted to Brigadier General (one-star rank) were Colonels Bernard Banac, the PNP spokesperson, and Walter Castillejos.
Prior to his designation as PNP spokesperson, Banac was the assistant chief of the PNP Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies, the police group which regulates security agencies.
Banac, 48, is a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of 1992, who also served as Provincial Director of Sorsogon, Chief of Diplomatic Protection Unit of the Police Security and Protection Group.
Banac was former Chief of Staff of the PNP Engineering Service and Senior Executive Assistant to the Chief, PNP in 2015-2016.
He obtained his Master’s Degree in Development Management from the Asian Institute of Management in 1999 and also underwent various training courses in Washington and Louisiana in the United States, Kosovo, Ivory Coast, and Thailand.
He also served as a Company Commander of the Special Action Force, as a field-grade officer in 1992.
Banac is a veteran of United Nations peacekeeping missions, where he served as Operations and Planning Officer in the UN Mission in Kosovo in 2009 and Technical Adviser of the UN Police Arms Embargo Cell in Abidjan, Ivory Coast in 2005
Meanwhile, promoted to Colonels were Lieutenant Colonels Hermogenes Cabe, Benliner Capili, Edilberto Leonardo, Judy Lopez, Fernando Ortega, and Brimar Rodica.
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