Nine members of the New People's Army (NPA) who have
surrendered to the authorities were immediately given financial assistance to
start a new life during a simple program Tuesday morning at the headquarters of
the 901st Infantry Brigade at Barangay Villahermosa in Daraga, Albay.
The monetary aid was provided under the Comprehensive Local
Integration Program (CLIP) of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
The CLIP is part of the local mechanism of the AFP to
achieve peace and sustainable development.
It started when the AFP, through the 9th Infantry (Spear)
Division, the Philippine National Police, and the Albay provincial government
entered into an agreement formally declaring the province as Manageable
Conflict Area on April 23 this year.
Under the agreement, the provincial government led by
Governor Joey Salceda has to address the root causes of internal security
threats through the CLIP to encourage NPA rebels to surrender voluntarily,
provide livelihood assistance and coordinate with different agencies of the
national government to address the specific grievances of the rebel-returnees.
Salceda said CLIP is a priority program in Albay.
Under the CLIP, each rebel-returnee receives Php50,000
livelihood assistance and another Php15,000 for immediate cash assistance.
One of the rebel returnees, a certain Ka Rolex, was a former
officer of Larangan 78 operating in Albay's second district under the
leadership of Ka Jerry Abache a.k.a. Arwan/Bitoy.
He admitted that he took part in conducting liquidations, ambuscades,
harassment of government troops, police, militia and suspected informers.
He thanked his wife and the government for all the help he
received, especially from Lt. Col. Perfecto Peñaredondo, 82nd Infantry
Battalion commanding officer, for taking the risk to live a new life.
"I can no longer bear the guilt I suffer on the
violence I had inflicted on innocent people and I thank the Lord for this new
lease on my life," the former rebel said.
Ka Rolex asked his former comrades to take advantage of the
rebel-returnee program while there is still time.
"I can stop this continuing unnecessary violence if I
give myself up because I still believe that evil will not triumph against a God
who is good and just," he said.
Brig. Gen. Ignacio Obligacion, 9th Infantry Division deputy
commanding general, said his most difficult problem as a military officer for
the past 37 years was to find an effective way to convince NPA rebels to return
to the fold of the law.
"It's not to finish all of you but to help you come
back as members of our society," said Obligacion.
Col. Cyle Yucot, 901st Brigade commander, said there are
still eight members of the Bicol Regional Party Committee and 29 NPA regulars
who are operating in Albay despite the downgrading of the Larangan 77 and 78
which have been the strongest guerrilla fronts in the 90s to Kilusang Sangay sa
Platon (KSPN) due to the casualties sustained in various encounters, surrender
and capture of its top leaders.
"We are now focusing our effort to address the rebels'
barangay-based militia and although they do not carry arms they also provide
intelligence on government troop movements as well as support and accommodation
of the NPA combat regulars in their area," said Yucot.
Yucot said specific grievances of NPA rebels can be
addressed with the help of provincial and national government agencies.
He said the CLIP has replaced the National Reconciliation
and Development Program (NRDP) in the 1980s, the National Program for
Unification and Development (NPUD), and the recent Social Integration Program
(SIP).
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=829040
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