IMPASUGONG, Bukidnon -- With the help of the Army, the parents of students at Malaybalay City National Science High School have created the “Sandigan," a core group of volunteers advocating to promote peace and combat the recruitment of the communist New People's Army (NPA) among youths in the city.
Sandigan was formed on Thursday (October 3) when the parents invited members of the Army's 8th Infantry Battalion (8IB) as resource speakers during a school symposium, which was also attended by former rebels and representatives from the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency in Region 10 (NICA-10).
Along with the 8IB, the resource speakers enlightened some 200 parents regarding the recruitment schemes of the NPA in schools around Northern Mindanao.
Alarmed with the possibility of their children being lured by the rebel communist movement into joining the insurgency, the parents responded by forming Sandigan before the symposium ended.
“We want to protect our children on this NPA recruitment, we want them to be productive in our society that’s the reason we came up with this special group," said Roger Nemenzo, president of the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) at the school.
John Rarogal, the school principal, expressed his gratitude to the parents and the Army for joining forces to combat NPA recruitment on campuses.
“I really appreciate the participation of the stakeholders to our invitation, and I believe that working together and helping each other will create an enormous result especially in combatting this NPA recruitment on campus,” he said.
Lieutenant Colonel Ronald Illana, 8IB commanding officer, encouraged the parents to send their children to military schools for the "privilege and honor" in serving the country.
Illana said the PTA's effort to form a core group within the campus to monitor NPA recruitment was a substantial contribution to the government's effort to end the communist insurgency.
The NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1082324
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