A surrenderer presents himself to 1st Infantry Battalion commander Lt. Col. Esteveyn Ducusin and Mawab Mayor Ruperto Gonzaga III. (71st Infantry Battalion)
NABUNTURAN, Compostela Valley (PIA) –Two self-confessed members of the New People’s Army (NPA) have surrendered with their war materials to the military, the chief of civil military operations of the 71st Infantry Battalion (IB) said Friday.
1st Lt. Jhocell Asis said “Marco,” 23, and “Janggoy,” 24, also surrendered three pieces of 15-kilo improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to Lt. Col. Esteveyn Ducusin, the commanders of the 71st IB.
The former rebels were welcomed by Mawab Mayor Ruperto Gonzaga III, who facilitated their formal handover, and escorted to Ducusin in Mawab town on Thursday.
Explaining the implication of the surrender, Ducusin said “the relentless efforts of the 71st IB in our area of operation impede the operation of NPA because mass supporters switched to trust military personnel.”
He denounced the communist movement for using IEDs, which he said have killed innocent civilians.
Asis said the surrendered IEDs were buried in Barangay Andili in Mawab by a certain “Rashed/Macdel,” a former commanding officer of the NPA’s Section Committee 27, who allegedly tasked “Marco” and “Janggoy” to watch over the war materials.
At the handover, “Marco” narrated that he was a squad leader, vice political instructor and vice commanding officer under Guerilla Front 27, Sub-Regional Committee 2 of the NPA’s Southern Mindanao Regional Command.
“Marco” was recruited by a certain “Val” to join the movement’s black propaganda to project it as the champion of the oppressed and make the government look corrupt.
Before becoming a full-time NPA member, “Marco” underwent seminars for communist cadres.
He admitted that he participated in an encounter with government forces at Bantayan, New Bataan in 2018.
As to “Janggoy,” the former squad medic for fellow guerillas in Guerilla Front 27 is a daughter of “Binoy,” also a known NPA member in Mawab.
She said it was her father who convinced her to join the movement. Ironically, it was his death during an encounter with government forces that prompted her to defect to the authorities.
“Janggoy” said she became disillusioned with the communist movement when her fellow guerillas left the lifeless body of her father during an encounter with government forces at Barangay Parasonon, Maragusan town in 2016.
During the formal handover, the mother of “Janggoy” expressed resentment towards the NPA, blaming the underground movement for the death of her husband and the family dysfunction.
Asis said the former rebels will be enrolled in the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Intergration Program for livelihood and other necessary assistance.
The NPA is the armed wing of the underground Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), which has waged a Maoist rebellion since 1969 that has left thousands dead.
The Philippine government has a pending court petition to have the CPP-NPA designated as terrorists.
https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1018243
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.