Army battalion arrives to monitor NPA presence in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines —  The Armed Forces of the Philippines - Central Command (CentCom) has deployed soldiers in Cebu as it did not discount the possibility of the presence of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the province.

Captain Joe Patrick Martinez, group commander of the 3rd Civil Relations Group, said the 82nd Infantry Battalion from Mindanao has just arrived to complement their security.

According to Martinez, this is an indication that the military is ready and capable of securing the whole island of Cebu.

“Kung dati isang kompanya lang ng 47th Infantry Battalion and nandidito and now naging isang full battalion,” said Martinez.

He added, this includes at least 500 personnel who handle Citizens Armed Force Geographical Unit (CAFGU) as force multiplier.

Police Colonel Engelbert Soriano, Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO) director, earlier said they also do not discount the possibility of having NPA presence in the province considering that its area is wide.

For the military, Martinez also thinks the same but he said the Cebuanos are “resilient” on the matter.

“Syempre no, sabi nga natin na even in a very secured environment lahat yan, ganitong mga elemento, actually, there is a possibility but nevertheless we have known the Cebuanos na very resilient,” said Martinez.

“Natagam naman ang mga Cebuanos sa mga ing-ani nga situation in the past since na declare nga insurgency-free ang Cebu, there are so many attempts to recover Cebu as far as NPA is concerned,” he added.

Martinez said that this is also because the Cebuanos are already aware of the negative side of the insurgency should they involve themselves with the NPA group.

This also reminds them of the loss of lives and destruction of the communities before that will serve as testimony among the people in Cebu to never engage with the NPA again.

“So kahit ano pang gawin nila, sabi ko nga they have the flexibility, they can roam around, yes, without carrying firearms but the question is yung tao ba gusto sila? So babalik po sa community yan,” said Martinez.

He added that they also believed that the Cebuanos are a peace-loving community. — GMR (FREEMAN)