DND backs Rody’s call for NPA to surrender

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of National Defense has expressed its full support to President Duterte’s renewed desire to settle the government’s age-old conflict with the New People’s Army (NPA).

Duterte called on the communist rebels to surrender, lay down their arms and live normal lives.

“The President’s latest call… only shows that he is giving the NPA every chance at achieving a peaceful resolution to the longstanding armed conflict,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said yesterday.

He added that Duterte has offered houses and livelihood to every rebel who returns to the fold of the law. 

“His offer to accommodate members of the communist movement shows his sincerity. The department fully supports the peace and security agenda of the President,” Lorenzana, martial law administrator, also said. 

Without giving the exact number, he claimed many have already surrendered and accepted the government’s offer.

8 NPAs surrender

Yesterday, the Philippine Army announced the surrender of eight self-confessed NPA members in Sultan Kudarat, bringing the total number of rebels who yielded to all other Armed Forces units to 60.

Capt. Rogelio Agustin Jr., Charlie company commander of the 33rd Infantry Battalion, said the group turned themselves in last Thursday, bringing with them two assault rifles and two powerful roadside bombs in Kuden village.

“They were very tired and hungry after months of evading our patrols in the forests. It is fortunate that they heard of the good stories about other rebels who surrendered to our unit in the past months,” Agustin added.

Their surrender was facilitated by Ka Bobby and Ka Jimboy, leaders of Platoon Cloudphone who surrendered in September, said 1st Lt. John Jamora, Alpha company commander.

Michael Galing, one of those who surrendered, said they decided to lay down their arms after authorities helped the Manobo tribe. This gesture, he added, made them believe that the government could resolve their community problems.

“We have realized that it is only the government that can give us such protection, not the NPA. We were on the run and were always in hiding since we joined the NPA,” Galing said in Cebuano.

He added that he and his companions were lured into joining the rebel group after they were promised protection from dispossession of their ancestral lands.

In Butuan City, the Philippine National Police reported an attack on its Station 5, one of its biggest remote command centers outside the city proper.

The rebels tried to seize the station Thursday dawn, added Lt. Col. Emil Cruz, commander of the Army’s 23rd Infantry Brigade.

No one was reported killed in the five-minute firefight but authorities say a number of rebels were wounded as can be seen from the trail of blood followed by the pursuing officers.

– With John Unson, Ben Serrano