Palace: NPA 'broke their word' on truce

MANILA, Philippines - "We are not at fault. We have no reason not to honor the cease-fire agreement."

 

Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said answering accusations that Malacañang refused to honor the extended truce with the Community Party of the Philippines and the New People's Army (CPP-NPA) until January 15.

 

The communist rebels, on the other hand, were accused of killing a wife of an Army militiaman in an ambush in Albay province hours after unilaterally lifting the truce on Wednesday. 

 

Lacierda denied that President Benigno Aquino III signed a prolonged cease-fire only after the agreement supposedly expired on Wednesday.

 

"The [cease-fire agreement] never expired first before the president signed it, let me declare. The expiration was until 12:00 am of January 3 (Thursday)," Lacierda said, explaining that the Palace was willing to honor the extended date.

 

Saying that the communist parties were the ones who prematurely terminated the truce, Lacierda added that Armed Forces of the Philippines was instructed to observe the temporary state of peace until January 15 even without Aquino's renewed directive.

 

"Obviously, (government) was willing to honor the cease-fire till the 15th of January ... (The rebel groups) were the ones who broke their word when they decided to pre-terminate the cease-fire agreement," Lacierda said.