Army colonel sacked for alleged gambling Joel Guinto INQ7.net
November 14, 2006
AN ARMY Colonel has been relieved from his post in Mindanao and placed under investigation in preparation for possible court martial after he was allegedly caught betting in a cockfight, officials said.
Army chief Lieutenant General Romeo Tolentino confirmed in a phone interview that Colonel Felipe Tabas has been sacked as commander of the 604th Brigade and submitted to an Army Provost Marshal inquiry but refused to elaborate.
However, at least two independent sources confirmed that Tabas' relief stemmed from his having been caught leaving a cockpit in Tacurong City with his winnings.
Army spokesman Major Ernesto Torres also confirmed in a separate interview that Tabas had been relieved, but he neither confirmed nor denied that this was due to allegations he betted on cockfights.
Torres would only say Tabas "fell short" during a periodic review by the Army Board of Senior Officers (BOSO), which recommended his relief to Tolentino.
"He [Tabas] was caught engaged in cockfighting in his area of responsibility. That is gambling. That is against our rules," an Army officer, who asked not to be named, said.
"The Provost Marshal is currently investigating him. He is just here [in] Fort Bonifacio, facing investigation," another Army officer, who is privy to the investigation, said.
Tabas was not immediately available for comment.
In another phone interview, military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Bartolome Bacarro said "excessive gambling" is prohibited under the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Code of Ethics.
"Excessive gambling is when it is beyond their means and when it interrupts their work," Bacarro said.
A graduate of the Philippine Military Academy's (PMA) 1976 class, Tabas served as chief of the defunct AFP Logistics Command, which was abolished in 2005 on allegations of corruption.
Tabas is the second military official in less than a month to be investigated for alleged misconduct.
In early October, Colonel Leopoldo Deocaris was relieved as commanding officer of the 1351st Dental Clinic at the AFP Medical Center in Quezon City and investigated by the AFP Provost Marshal due to multiple sexual harassment complaints.
