THE Philippine Army announced it would review its recruitment process and mental health program after a private suddenly went berserk inside a military camp in Mindanao and shot dead 4 of his sleeping colleagues before being himself shot dead last February 11, 2023.
Philippine Army Commanding General Lt. General Romeo Brawner he ordered the review affer the incident.
“I ordered an honest-to-goodness assessment of our mental health programs. We already have mental health programs in the Philippine Army, but my question is, are these being implemented properly by our units,” he told reporters during an interview several days later, last February 15, 2023.
“One thing that we are also looking into is the proper recruitment procedures for our new recruits. We have to make sure that all of them will pass the neuropsychiatric examination,” he added.
Past 1:00 am on February 11, Maj. Francisco Garello Jr., 4ID spokesperson, said the shooting incident occurred at the barracks of the Service Support Battalion (SSBn), 4th Infantry Division inside Camp Evangelista, Cagayan de Oro City.
A report from the 4ID said the suspect shot dead four SSBn personnel using a government-issued M16 rifle while the victims were sleeping.
He then proceeded to another barrack but two responding soldiers overpowered and grappled with the gun until the suspect was gunned down.
The identities of the suspect and the victims were withheld pending notice of their families, Garello said.
The suspect had a rank of private while the victims had ranks of sergeant, corporal, private first class, and private.
A ‘BOI’ (Board of Inquiry) was also immediately formed by the Philippine Army to further investigate the matter.