He held various positions in the Falintil under the Fretilin, such as the political assistant for the Fretilin, and served during Indonesian invasion of East Timor. He served as commander of the Region 4 in 1984, became commander of the Centro Leste sector in 1987 and became commander of the Ponta Leste sector in 1993. He then serves as the Chief of Staff of the F-FDTL, and was promoted to Colonel by Taur Matan Ruak.