Palace: Joma Sison ceased to be relevant
MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang will no longer comment on statements issued by Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founding chair Joma Sison, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Thursday.
In a press briefing, Roque was asked to comment on a CPP statement that it was impossible to hold localized peace talks, to which he responded he was not compelled to react on anything Sison says.
Roque said that Sison is now "completely irrelevant" as the peace negotiations between the government and communist rebels have been canceled.
"Joma Sison can say anything he wants. That's his opinion. He's living 10,000 miles away so I don't see how he can even be relevant," Roque said.
The Malacañang spokesman noted that local government officials have already been conducting localized peace talks, which resulted in the surrender of some rebels, particularly in the Davao region.
On the other hand, Roque reiterated that President Rodrigo Duterte is still open to continue peace negotiations with communist rebels as long as they adhere to the president's conditions.
Duterte had also advised local government units conducting localized negotiations not to enter into agreements on governance.
"The LGU should await the guidelines to be approved by the Cabinet cluster on security," Roque said.
The Cabinet cluster on security is scheduled to meet on July 12 to finalize guidelines for localized peace talks.
Roque also stressed that Duterte does not have any plan to declare a nationwide martial law as it would be problematic.
Meanwhile, Sison belied the claims of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Interior Undersecretary Eduardo Año and national security adviser Hermogenes Esperon that the CPP has a three-year plan to oust Duterte by October.
In a statement released Wednesday night, Sison said that the Cabinet security cluster misrepresented the three-year plan of the CPP central committee to strengthen the group ideologically, politically and organizationally.
"In fact, the so-called October ouster plan of the CPP, NPA and NDFP is a mere fabrication of Duterte and his militarist adjutants to carry out a fascist coup against the 1987 Constitution under the guise of pushing charter change for federalism," Sison said.
Sison, who is also the chief political consultant of the National Democratic Front, accused the Duterte administration of using the CPP-NPA as "scapegoats" for imposing martial law nationwide.
Duterte would most likely be ousted by mass actions and the eventual withdrawal of support from the military and the police as what happened in the ouster of dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986 and convicted plunderer Joseph Estrada in 2001, he added.
"At any rate, I should rate as big liars Duterte, the militarists and the mouthpiece Roque when in one and the same moment they underestimate the strength of the NPA at 2,000 to 4,000 fighters and claim to have 'neutralized' (captured and killed) more than 7,000 NPA fighters and caused the surrender of more than 7,000 NPA fighters," Sison said. — Patricia Lourdes Viray
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