ILIGAN CITY--A high-ranking Army official based in Marawi City said he has been tasked as a resource speaker for security concerns in his trip to Japan, as part of the official delegation of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Duterte arrived in Japan Tuesday evening for a four-day working visit.
In a Viber message Wednesday morning, Col. Romeo Brawner, Jr., commander of the Army's 103rd Infantry Brigade, said he was invited to travel with the President as a resource person on the aspect of security in Marawi City and Lanao del Sur.
He also rejected the notion that his trip was a mere junket, as alleged by the critics of the Duterte administration.
Brawner, whose unit has jurisdiction of the whole Lanao del Sur--including Marawi City--is at the forefront of the military's continuing campaign to run after the remnants, followers, and supporters of the Islamic State-allied extremists.
In May 2018, the governments of Japan and the Philippines formalized the 2-billion yen grant for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Marawi.
"Thus, the security in the area is an utmost concern for them (Japanese government)," Brawner said.
Brawner was the spokesperson of the former Joint Task Force (JTF) Marawi that oversaw the government's messaging in both national and international media at the height of the Marawi siege.
When the JTF Marawi was deactivated, he took over as Regiment commander of the Civil Military Operations Group before he assumed as commander of the 103rd Brigade that oversees Marawi City and Lanao del Sur. (PNA)
