Parlade to retire July 26; to be replaced at AFP SolCom by Medal of Valor awardee

MANILA - Controversial military officer Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade will retire from the service on July 26, and will be replaced at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Southern Luzon Command by Maj. Gen. Bartolome Bacarro, a Medal of Valor awardee, officials said Wednesday.

Defense Sec. Delfin Lorenzana confirmed the new designation of Bacarro, who is currently commander of the Philippine Army's 2nd Infantry Division, a position he held only in April.

Parlade, who serves as spokesman of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, will reach the mandatory retirement age of 56 on July 26.

The military official made headlines for remarks he issued against some personalities and groups regarding their alleged links to the communist movement in the country.

He also called senators "stupid" for seeking to defund the NTF-ELCAC.

• 14 senators want Parlade censured after 'stupid' remark
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• Military urged: Fire Parlade over red-tagging claims

Parlade belongs to the same class of 1987 of the Philippine Military Academy as AFP chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana.

Bacarro, meanwhile, who was conferred the Medal of Valor following an encounter with New People's Army rebels in Isabela in 1991, is a member of PMA Class 1988.

He was commandant of the Cadet Corps of the PMA in Baguio City when cadet Darwin Dormitorio died from hazing, prompting his resignation in 2019 due to command responsibility.

He and then PMA superintendent Lt. Gen. Ronnie Evangelista were charged over the hazing but were cleared by government prosecutors for lack of probable cause.

• PMA head steps down over cadet's hazing death

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