Paulino Torres Santos Sr. (June 22, 1890 – August 29, 1945) was a military officer who became the Commanding General of the Philippine Army from May 6 to December 31, 1936.

Santos was appointed as Third Lieutenant of the PC in 1914, and as such, he worked hard and continued studying to be more effective in his assignment as a field officer.

As government cannons were bombarding the Muslim bulwark of Lumamba, Lieutenant Santos led his platoon in penetrating the formerly secure redoubt, through an opening made in the barricade, and immediately erected a ladder to scale the first kota.

Immediately, he and his men engaged its defenders in a bloody hand-to-hand combat, killing 30 of them, and thus preserving the lives of government soldiers.

In 1936, he was recalled to military service through his appointment as brigadier general and assistant chief of staff of the Philippine Army by President Quezon.

With orders from Quezon, he led the first group of 200 migrants from Luzon and the Visayas who transformed the primeval Lagao area in Koronadal Valley into a productive and progressive colony of six communities on February 27, 1939.

While taken prisoner by the Japanese, Santos fell ill, mostly due to effects of inclement weather and his refusal to take full meals because of food shortages.

As a tribute to his legacy in the area, the municipality of Buayan (formerly Dadiangas) was renamed General Santos in June 1954,[2] which, by virtue of Republic Act No.

As Chief of Staff of the Philippine Army, Major General Santos is a pioneer in the Self Reliance Defence concept as early as the 1930s.