Camp General Vicente Lukban, Catbalogan City, Samar
June 19, 2019

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte addressed the commanders, junior officers, enlisted personnel and civilian employees of the Philippine Army’s 8th Infantry Division (8ID), also known as the ‘Stormtroopers’, during his visit to the Camp General Vicente Lukban in Catbalogan City, Samar.

In his message, President Duterte lauded the 8ID for supporting his administration’s drive against illegal drugs through its intensive operations that led to the confiscation of the illegal substance and paraphernalia, as well as multiple arrests of personalities involved in the illegal drug trade.

Likewise, he commended the Stormtroopers for curbing local insurgency and called on the communist rebels to abandon their false ideology and surrender to the military. In return, he promised the rebel surrenderees a new beginning by providing them with their own shelters and livelihood to support their respective families.

Prior to his talk, the Commander-in-Chief led the ceremonial distribution of 2,700 Glock pistols to the 8th Infantry Division representatives.

The officers of the Samar Provincial Police Office also attended the event.

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