Duterte sees Reds defeated in mid-2019

MANILA, Philippines — President Duterte is expecting the defeat of the decades-old communist insurgency by the second quarter of 2019 as the prospects for peace talks between the government and the rebels remain uncertain.

Duterte said many communist New People’s Army (NPA) rebels have surrendered despite threats of being assassinated by their former comrades. 

“I think that if God is merciful, this would be over by about the second quarter of next year. Many are surrendering. The good thing there is there are firearms,” the President said. 

“Usually, they do not bring firearms. That’s really prohibited. You will really be killed. But this time, they are coming down and surrendering firearms,” he added. 

Duterte said rebel leaders were among those who have abandoned the armed struggle. Intelligence personnel were able to gather information from the insurgents who surrendered, he added. 

Previous presidents have also predicted the demise of the communist movement, the oldest existing Maoist insurgency in the region. 

Peace negotiations between the government and the rebels were terminated after Duterte accused the communists of seeking a coalition government, a power-sharing setup that he said is not allowed by the Constitution.

The President has also chided the rebels for launching attacks against government forces and civilians while talks of the opioid are ongoing. 

‘Delusion’

Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Jose Ma. Sison claimed that Duterte showed signs of delusion when he predicted the downfall of the CPP-NPA next year, saying it is more likely that the President will be ousted from power before that period.

Sison, in his social media post yesterday, said that Duterte’s statement may be a result of his taking too much Fentanyl.

“It is more likely that Duterte would be ousted from power” than him destroying the people’s revolutionary movement by the middle of next year, Sison said.

The President had also claimed that Sison is dying of cancer.

National Democratic Front (NDF) peace panel chairman Fidel Agcaoili denied Sison is dying. He said the CPP founding chairman has recovered from a bout of arthritis.

Sison added that people consider Duterte a clown who imagines that he has all the money to give jobs and houses to the millions of people who participate in the revolutionary movement.

“More importantly, he is now the target of people’s rising hatred. They reject the traitorous, tyrannical, murderous and corrupt character of his regime,” Sison said. –  With Jaime Laude