“On 22 October, President Digong appointed Vice Admiral Joel Sarsiban Garcia as the 28th Commandant of the PCG after the retirement of his predecessor.

Yes Virginia, a Muslim now commands the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG). It is phenomenal and trailblazing, unlikely to happen decades ago in a society where feeling of distrust and bigotry by majority against minority was deeply-rooted. It’s a great leap towards a better Philippine society.

Fortnight ago Concon Domado, a nephew, called me about my invitation to a turnover of command in the PCG. My first reaction was: what the heck? It doesn’t interest me a bit. I have long outlived the age attending ceremonies of that kind and would rather play a round of golf. I no longer have patience for pomp and pageantry. But Concon told me that it was not an ordinary event because for the first time in the history of the PCG, a Muslim will be installed as Commandant. That stoked my interest. Indeed, it was a historic occasion deserving attention. Unfortunately, because of mix-up of schedules I had to beg off.

The PCG is an “armed and uniformed service” primarily tasked to enforce laws within Philippine waters. Its mandate includes “safeguarding life and property at sea, and protecting maritime environment and resources.” Operationally and administratively, it is an attached agency of the Department of Transportation.

During wartime it is an attached service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

The Philippine being an archipelago, the roles of the PCG cannot be overemphasized. It protects our seas from Batanes to Tawi-Tawi. And during sea mishaps it is the first responder that has the training and expertise for saving lives and properties.

On 22 October, President Digong appointed Vice Admiral Joel Sarsiban Garcia as the 28th Commandant of the PCG after the retirement of his predecessor.

Commander Garcia comes equipped with an impressive academic credentials one rarely finds in a uniformed officer. Along his long lines of qualifications is his masteral, doctorate degrees and trainings which prepared him for the top post of the PCG. He has rich experience in various offices he previously held whose mandate are germane to his present position to make him “fit to a tee.” The PCG profusely thanked the President for appointing a “visionary leader… passionate in accomplishing the PCG’s mandate.”

But I write this piece not to extoll the qualities and qualifications of Commandant Garcia. He has a load of it. He was vetted by Malacañang and came out qualified.

The significance of his appointment created waves among Moros, some couldn’t believe even with his credentials par excellence. He embraced Islam devotedly and performed the pilgrimage to Holy Mecca, one of the pillars of Islam. In fact, among his myriad of experience is being Chairman of the Committee on Islamic Religious Studies of the Commission on Higher Education.

The position of PCG Commandant Garcia is very sensitive and critical in terms of addressing the defense and security concerns of our government in our southern border with neighboring Asean countries.

True, our archipelagic country is porous, but the Sulu sea is the weakest point in our maritime defense mechanism. On a clear summer day in Tawi-Tawi you could see the shores of Sabah, Malaysia. Because of this proximity it has become the strategic route for smugglers, human traffickers and more recently the ISIS-affiliated Asean fighters who reinforced the Abu Sayyaf-Maute rebels in the Marawi war. A Muslim Commandant Garcia is best bet to plug the loophole.

For decades Morolandia was in social turmoil and unrest because of the struggle for Merdeka or independence of the Moros which has now mutated into autonomy. This has incubated doubts on the mind of policymakers about the priority of their patriotism and nationalism. Are they loyal to the Philippine government or to their bangsa or race? Commandant Garcia, al-haj, is out to disprove skeptics’ doubt.

Distrust, bigotry and bias were strong factors in the divide between the minority Moros and non-Moros. The crimes, depredations and pillage attributed to Moros in the past were factors for the negative feeling that fertilized in the hearts of many including government decision makers. The Moro before was the bogeyman unworthy of trust.

That a Muslim was appointed to a critical position of commandant of PCG speaks volume of the eventual restoration of this trust. We cannot for long nurture discord among us if we want our society to move on and prosper.