9 former rebels enroll in 10-month ALS program

From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 2, 2021): 9 former rebels enroll in 10-month ALS program (By Mary Judaline Partlow)  February 2, 2021, 2:19 pm

ALTERNATIVE LEARNING SYSTEM. Nine former members of the New People's Army are currently enrolled in the Alternative Learning System program of the government at a Philippine Army camp in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental. The enrollees surrendered on separate dates and occasions to the military last year. (Photo courtesy of the 62nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army)

Nine former members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) are enrolled in a 10-month Alternative Learning System (ALS) program at Camp Tirambulo in Barangay McKinley, Guihulngan City in Negros Oriental.

The nine former NPA members, comprised of two females from Negros Oriental and seven males from Negros Occidental, surrendered on separate occasions and different dates last year, said Capt. Raymond Jamisal, the Civil-Military Operations officer of the 62nd Infantry Battalion (62IB) of the Philippine Army based in Guihulngan City in a phone interview on Monday.

Jamisal said the ALS program is a joint endeavor of the 62IB, the 3rd Infantry Division, and the Department of Education (DepEd) in Guihulngan City, to provide alternative access to education to those who cannot afford formal education.

He said the former rebels consider the program a huge help in finding better opportunities.

“The enrollees will have to pass the ALS accreditation and equivalency test for them to qualify for a higher level of education and any job opportunities,” Jamisal said.

Launched last Jan. 25, the ALS for surrendered rebels is one of the programs of the Guihulngan City Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (GCTF-ELCAC) and Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).

Guihulngan is one of the priority areas in Negros Oriental for the ELCAC under the whole-of-nation approach of President Rodrigo Duterte to end the insurgency and attain sustainable and inclusive peace.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1129203