8 ex-NPA rebels in Sarangani get aid

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 21, 2019): 8 ex-NPA rebels in Sarangani get aid

Eight former New People's Army (NPA) rebels in Sarangani province received financial assistance on Thursday under the government's expanded reintegration program.

Sarangani Governor Seve Chiongbian Solon said the recipients comprised the latest batch of rebel returnees from the province who qualified for support assistance under the flagship Enhanced Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).

The eight returnees received PHP25,000 to PHP65,000 each for initial livelihood assistance and remuneration for surrendered firearms, he said.

The financial assistance was released during the joint meeting of the Provincial Peace and Order and Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Council at the provincial capitol in Alabel town on Thursday.

The meeting was led by Gov. Solon, the chair of the two councils, and graced by Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Region 12 director, Josephine Leysa; the Army's 1002nd Brigade commander, Col. Adonis Bajao; and Sarangani police director, Col. Arpha Abul Kyr Macalangcom.

The governor said the returnees, who surrendered earlier this year, were former members of the NPA's Front 71.

He said seven of them were from the municipality of Malapatan while one was from Malungon.

"This is just the initial assistance that they will receive under the E-CLIP. We're working on some additional interventions in coordination with our partner agencies," Solon told reporters.

Under the E-CLIP, the governor said the former rebels stand to receive housing assistance, skills training, health insurance coverage, and other related interventions.

The provincial government is currently building a halfway house for former NPA rebels in Barangay Poblacion, Alabel town.

Solon said the facility, which was supported by a PHP5-million grant from the DILG, is already 98 percent complete.

"Our halfway house will be the first to open soon in the entire Region 12 (Soccsksargen)," he said, citing a report from the DILG regional office.

The halfway house will have three rooms for males, three rooms for females, a conjugal room, an office, a kitchen, and a conference room. It will serve as a temporary home for rebel returnees in the province for 15 days to one month.

Solon added that former rebels who will seek shelter in the halfway house will undergo skills training, healing sessions, and psychosocial interventions to prepare them for integration into society's mainstream.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1072971