FORT BONIFACIO, Metro Manila – The Philippine Army’s 51st Engineer Brigade (51st EBde) installed a new commander yesterday, August 5, 2021, at Camp General Rigoberto Atienza, Libis, Quezon City.
Maj. Gen. Robert Dauz, Philippine Army Vice Commander, presided the turnover of leadership from Brig. Gen. Lyndon Sollesta, outgoing 51st EBde commander, to the incoming 51st EBde commander Col. Jt Bajet.
Col. Bajet is a member of Officer Candidate School (OCS) Class of 1992 and was the Acting Chief of 51st EBde’s Governance and Strategy Management Office before assuming the said post. He is a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. A licensed engineer, he has been designated with various key positions in the Army’s 54th, 52nd, and 51st Engineer Brigades. He served as the Chief of Staff of 51st EBde; as the Commanding Officer of 547th Engineer Construction Battalion, 52nd Engineer Brigade; and as the Executive Officer of the Army Chief of Engineers. He also holds a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering and a Master's in National Security Administration.
Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Sollesta is a member of the Officer Candidate School (OCS) Class of 1988 and will be retiring after his 33 years of military service. He was assigned as the Battalion Commander of the Engineer Construction Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division; as Chief of the Army Housing Office; and as the Commanding Officer of Engineer Maintenance and Support Battalion, 53rd Engineer Brigade. Under his leadership as 51st EBde Commander, the brigade was able to finish 12 Base Development Projects, 38 National Development and Partnership Projects, 59 Facility Projects as well as conducted Humanitarian and Disaster Response (HADR) operations during the Tall volcano eruption and the COVID19 pandemic.
The 51st EBde is the Army’s developmental arm in Luzon that provides engineer support, HADR, and socio-economic development programs to the Philippine Army units and the government’s flagship projects.
“Continue to do what you have been doing best, which is to help achieve our nation’s aspiration of socio-economic development and lasting peace,” noted Maj. Gen. Dauz. “As one team Army, let us cultivate pathways and eliminate obstacles as we traverse the path towards becoming a world-class Army that is a source of national pride,” he added. #