Zambo Schools to be wary on terrorist’s recruitment - Former Rebel

From the Philippine Information Agency (Feb 4, 2021): Zambo Schools to be wary on terrorist’s recruitment - Former Rebel (By Jayson R. Aucensillo) 

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Feb 4 (PIA) - As the Communist Party of the Philippines - New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) propaganda still reigns for over five (5) decades now, the Philippine Information Agency (PIA)-9 together with the security forces of Zamboanga City unite to counter their ‘hoopla’ by a massive information dissemination drive to avoid undergoing communist recruitments and infiltration of terrorist groups in schools.

Recently, the information volunteers (ivolunteers), who are student leaders of their respective colleges and universities in Zamboanga City converged in the meeting and campaign planning on defying the entry of the lawless groups in their respective schools.

Ka Amihan, a former rebel and currently the media and information officer of Sambayanan National, is continuously appealing the schools to really monitor those organizations who will tend to infiltrate the schools and be aware of those legal front organizations whose aim is to encourage the youth and/or students to be part of terrorism groups.

"They are hypocrites if they say they promote terrorism, rather they will really look for a way just to recruit those potential youth or students that they could easily persuade to engage on their group,” said Ka Amihan during the ivolunteer meeting and campaign planning.



"That’s why I encourage the school managements together with the government agencies to have a massive information dissemination campaign that could deactivate the operations of their recruitment,” Ka Amihan added.

Moreover, there are three (3) reasons why insurgency exists; poverty, social injustice and illiteracy and the government is now doing steps to address these factors by means of “informing the public as well as to let them feel that there is a government that cares,” affirmed by Chairperson of Joint Regional Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (JRTF-ELCAC)-9 and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA)-9 Regional Director Ariel T. Perlado.



Undeniably, the students remain to be one of the vulnerable sectors on NPA-CPP recruitment and they are seem to be easily believed with the talks of the terrorists.

"We are here to plan and raise awareness to the student leaders with regards to the CTG’s propaganda and give interventions to prevent the deceitful moves of the lawless groups,” said PIA-9 Regional Director Noemi B. Edaga.

Present on the planning were from the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA)-9, Joint Task Force-Zamboanga (JTFZ), 4th Civil Relations Group (CRG), and Commission on Higher Education (CHED)-9 who shared their agency’s views and counterpart in response to the possible communist terrorist activities.



By means of the massive information dissemination drive against the propaganda of the other side, the government is hopeful to win the trust of the public and put an end on their undergoing recruitments in school and in the city.

As of now, the CPP-NPA-NDF's presence in Zamboanga City is still not very prominent, but still authorities are cautious because anytime, they could resume recruitment. (RVC/JRA/PIA9-Zamboanga City)

https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1065936