NPA fighter surrenders in Lake Sebu

From the Mindanao Times (Jul 6): NPA fighter surrenders in Lake Sebu

A member of the New People’s Army (NPA) operating in South Cotabato surrendered to the troops of 27th Infantry Battalion in Barangay, Tasiman, Lake Sebu in South Cotabato on Tuesday.

Capt. Mc Gary Dida, the civil-military operations officer of the 1002nd Infantry Brigade, identified him as alias Funok, 33, a resident of Barangay Tasiman, Lake Sebu, who also turned over his M16 rifle.

“They failed their promise to give financial support to my family. I am tired of hiding from the government troops and I’m afraid of being caught in the firefight during encounter, “ Timbang told soldiers.

Last June 7, 2018, three NPAs also surrendered to the troops of 27IB, bringing along their three M16 rifles, in T’boli, South Cotabato.

“We remain open and continue to exert efforts to reach out to those remaining NPAs who would like to surrender and return to the mainstream society as productive citizens,” Lt. Col. Jones Brisal Otida, the 27th IB commander, said.

The former rebels will be presented to the local government unit of South Cotabato for immediate assistance. They will also be enrolled in the Comprehensive Local Integration Program.

Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Noel S. Clement, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, lauded the troops’ accomplishment.

“The units under the 10th ID will continuously accept the NPA terrorists who want to surrender and go back to the folds of law,” he said.

Meanwhile, based on the record of the 10th ID, there were already 357 NPA fighters, 541 militia ng bayan members, 213 Sangay sa Partido Lokal (SPL), and 5,414 mass supporters who surrendered from January 2018 until June.

They have also recorded 80 encounters where 22 rebels killed and 31 arrested. They also recovered 129 firearms at the encounter sites. They also recorded 199 high-powered and low-powered firearms brought along by the guerrillas in the surrenders. Also, 169 improvised explosive devices were recovered by the different units of the 10th ID.

During the same period, seven soldiers and three Cafgu members were killed. Meanwhile, 42 soldiers and seven Cafgu were wounded for the first half of the year.

http://mindanaotimes.net/npa-fighter-surrenders-in-lake-sebu-2/