Kalinaw News: More and more NPA active supporters turn their back on terror

Posted to Kalinaw News (Oct 6, 2021): More and more NPA active supporters turn their back on terror



Camp Downes, Ormoc City – As Army troops continue to conduct ‘Operation Barangayan’ and ‘Kumustahan sa Barangay’ in the province of Leyte, 12 active supporters, couriers and candidate members of the terrorist CPP-NPA-NDF presented themselves to the Barangay Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (BTF-ELCAC) chaired by Barangay Captain Eufronio S. Damas of Barangay Balocawehay in Abuyog, Leyte with the assistance of the troops of 14IB on Saturday, October 2, 2021.

Operation Barangayan and Kumustahan sa Barangay are people-centric activities that were conducted in Barangay Balocawehay due to prior information about enemy presence in the area given by former rebels who are now members of the Integrated Peace and Development Workers Association (IPDWA).

The personalities who surrendered are identified by their aliases, for security reasons, as Lucy, candidate party member; Linda, supporter; Roger, courier; Marites, candidate party member; Pidyo, courier; Eduardo, courier; Victor, supporter; Roberto, supporter; Bibi, supporter; Larry, supporter; Cesar, supporter; and, Renato, supporter. All of them are residents of Sitio Quarry, Brgy. Balocawehay, Abuyog, Leyte. Their surrender also brings to 33 total active CPP-NPA-NDF supporters, couriers, candidate party members and contacts who surfaced since the IPDWA started participating in the efforts of the TF-ELCAC in the provinces of Leyte and Southern Leyte in the third quarter of this year.

Based on their revelations, they were recruited by CPP-NPA terrorist leader Fermin Guzon aka Jaguar/Isyot/Dakpal who upon introducing himself as “Renato”, promised to help them in their farms through the so called “agrarian revolution”. In exchange of that promise, they attended series of meetings and teach-ins and allowed themselves to be used either as contacts, active couriers and supporters in the Barangay.

In addition, Lucy confided that some of them have no recourse but to be recruited due to intimidation and fear of being killed. Marites likewise mentioned that their surrender have actually aborted Fermin Guzon’s plan of establishing a politico-military organ in the barangay with the 12 of them composing the core group, considering that they already have undergone lectures on Maikling Kurso sa Lipunan ng Rebolusyonaryong Pilipino or MKLRP.

“I enjoin all the residents in the area to actively support the campaign and the TF-ELCAC by providing timely information on the whereabouts of the terrorist CPP-NPA-NDF. In this way we can prevent them from spreading lies, deceiving people and conducting atrocities,” Lieutenant Colonel Ernesto Dela Rosa, Commanding Officer 14IB, said.

Brigadier General Zosimo Oliveros, Commander of 802nd Brigade, expressed his appreciation to the BTF ELCAC of Balocawehay, Abuyog, Leyte chaired by Brgy Captain Eufronio S Damas and the members of IPDWA of Mahaplag, Leyte for their untiring effort and timely information that prevented the activities of the CPP-NPA-NDF terrorists in the area. He also commended the troops of 14IB for the successful conduct of Operation Barangayan and Kumustahan sa Barangay in the area.

Commander 802nd Brigade said, “The timely information given by the former rebels/CPP-NPA-NDF supporters who are now our partners as IPDWA members is very important in our campaign in preventing recruitment activities and recovery efforts of the CPP-NPA-NDF terrorists. Through the timely action of the BTF ELCAC and our troops, we have also saved the precious lives of 12 of our fellow Filipinos by preventing them to become CPP-NPA-NDF terrorists.”

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