Reyes remains arrive at Camp Aguinaldo

(Updated 3:25 p.m.) Former military chief Angelo Reyes has returned to Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City for one last time, as his remains arrived at the military headquarters Friday. Escorted by military honor guards and police mobile vehicles, Reyes’ remains entered Gate 1 of Camp Aguinaldo shortly before noon and were brought to the St. Ignatius Cathedral for the arrival rites, a dzBB report said. DzBB’s Benjie Liwanag Jr. also reported that members of the Quezon City Police District accompanied the funeral convoy, even as security remained tight inside the camp. Reyes' immediate family members, most of whom were seen weeping as they entered the military headquarters, were greeted by AFP vice chief of staff Lt. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu. Maj. Gen. Ricardo Banayo of the Philippine Air Force led the arrival ceremonies. Among the military officials who stood as pall bearers were Brig. Gen. Romeo B. Fajardo, Brig. Gen. Remegio De Vera, Brig. Gen. George de Jesus, Brig. Gen. Eugene Clemen, and Brig. Gen. Ramiro Alivio. A military band played the song Nearer my God to Thee as the casket of Reyes was unloaded from the funeral car. A number of troops provided arrival honors for Reyes, who served as AFP chief from July 1999 to March 2001. Soon after Reyes' coffin was placed in front of the altar, hundreds of people, including military personnel and DND employees, lined up to view Reyes' body. "Many people went here, a lot of people have been touched by the late, the former chief of staff and former secretary of national defense…We expect that there will be more people who will be coming here to pay their respects," said Eduardo Batac, spokesperson for the DND.
Former Justice Undersecretary Ricardo Blancaflor, who witnessed the military honors, recounted in a radio dzBB interview his fondest memories of the deceased military chief. "Iyong lagi siyang nagta-trabaho siguro [ang pinakanaalala ko]. Bago siya matulog trabaho pa rin ang inaatupag niya," said Blancaflor. Before being brought to the military camp, Reyes' remains were brought to the Ramon Magsaysay High School in Cubao, Quezon City, of which the late general was an alumnus. [See story: Angelo Reyes' alma mater pays tribute to the late general] Reyes was named military chief by former President Joseph Estrada in July 1999. It was during his term as AFP chief that most of the camps of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front were overran by government forces. In January 2001, Reyes led the military hierarchy in turning against Estrada, which resulted in the ouster of the latter and the assumption to power of then Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Upon his retirement from military service in March 2001, Reyes was named Defense chief. From then on, he also held three other Cabinet posts: Interior, Environment and Energy chief. Amid accusations of irregularities in the Armed Forces during his stint as chief of staff, Reyes shot himself last Tuesday in front of his mother's grave at the Loyola Memorial Park in Marikina City. — LBG/RSJ, GMA News