6 ex-rebels benefit from aid caravan

From the Manila Times (Mar 21, 2022): 6 ex-rebels benefit from aid caravan (By Francis Earl Cueto)

THE Municipal Task Force to End the Local Communist Armed Conflict (MTF-Elcac) of Capas, Tarlac on Sunday distributed financial assistance to six former rebels during a Serbisyo Caravan held at Sitio Pisapungan, Barangay Sta. Juliana, in Capas held last March 15, 2022.

Maj. Gen. Andrew Costelo, commander of the 7th Infantry (Kaugnay) Division, Philippine Army, said the financial assistance was an initiative of the MTF-Elcac of Capas as a form of subsidy, while the ex-rebels await their benefits under the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program of the government.

The former insurgents from the New People's Army (NPA) surrendered to the 3rd Mechanized Infantry Battalion (3MIB) last June 2021 as a result of intensified community support program operations in the area.

"We are happy for the relentless support of our LGU (local government unit) for the former rebels," Costelo said.

The caravan also benefited at least 200 Indigenous Peoples (IPs).

During the activity, an information awareness drive focusing on the NPA's allegedly deceptive recruitment among the IPs was conducted by a representative from the Situational Awareness and Knowledge Management cluster of Elcac Region 3 (Central Luzon).

Food packs, shoes for children, vegetable seedlings, medicines and vaccination shots against Covid-19 were given to residents during the Serbisyo Caravan.

Capas Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan, MTF-Elcac chairman, commended the former rebels for their commitment to supporting the government.

"Sa mga nagbalik-loob, binabati ko kayo at saludo ako sa inyo. Walang ibang tutulong sa atin kundi ang ating gobyerno, kahit tayo'y nasa kapatagan o sa kabundukan, dapat tayo ay magkaisa dahil iisa lang tayo, Pilipino tungo sa asensadong gobyerno (To those who returned to the government side, I salute you. No other person will help you aside from the government even if you are on the mountains or plain land, we should unite, Filipinos, toward a better government)," Catacutan said.

Lt. Col. Eugene Henry Cabusao, commanding officer of the 3MIB, called on other rebels to also surrender and return to their normal lives together with their families.

https://www.manilatimes.net/2022/03/21/news/regions/6-ex-rebels-benefit-from-aid-caravan/1836979