AFP has first female Judge Advocate General

Col. Marian Aleido, first woman Judge Advocate General of the AFP.

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InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5

MANILA, Philippines -- President Benigno Aquino III has approved the appointment of the first female officer to head the Office of the Judge Advocate General, which is tasked is to prosecute cases involving officers and soldiers and act as legal adviser to the Armed Forces chief of staff and secretary of national defense.

Colonel Marian C. Aleido assumed her position Monday, replacing Brigadier General Gilberto Jose Roa.

Aleido was the first female to be commissioned and called to active duty as a military lawyer in 1984.

“I am thankful, overwhelmed and overjoyed. Not in my wildest imaginations did I ever think that I would be able to achieve this position especially that the JAGS used to be, and still is, a male-dominated unit in the AFP,” Aleido said.

She intends to institute some changes in her office to make it more responsive and effective.

“We need to put lawyers in the position where they can best utilize their experience and skills,” she said. “The AFP needs more lawyers and therefore our priority is to recruit more lawyers through advertisement in different law schools and military camps.”

Aleido, who was Army Judge Advocate for almost three years, also served as officer-in-charge of the Office of the Provost Marshall General; Deputy JAG; Deputy Naval Judge Advocate; and Marine Corps Staff Judge Advocate.

She was also chief of the Legal Branch at the Office of the Inspector General concurrent with her designation as deputy chief of the Office of Ethical Standards and Public Accountability of the General Headquarters, AFP Wide Service Support Units in 1993.

Aleido is a 1979 law graduate of the University of the East. After a short stint with her father’s law office in Jaro, Leyte, she joined the military in 1984.

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