NDFP, Año continue to trade barbs

From Malaya Business Insight (Aug 11): NDFP, Año continue to trade barbs

THE National Democratic Front of the Philippines yesterday lashed backed at AFP chief Gen. Eduardo Año who said communist party founder Jose Maria “Joma” Sison needs psychiatric help after exposing a supposed military plan to assassinate Sison and oust President Duterte.

In a statement, the NDFP said it has sufficient “factual basis and compelling reason” to expose the plot to discourage and frustrate the execution of the plan of the military establishment.

“In due time, more facts shall be revealed, with due consideration to the safety and security of patriotic military officers who are the sources of information,” the NDFP said.

The NDFP first revealed the supposed plot last Tuesday. Sison later confirmed the plot, adding he has taken security measures to preempt the plot. The following day, Año dismissed the revelation, and said Sison “needs psychiatric help to treat his hallucinations.” Año said Sison made the same kill plot story during the time of President Estrada in 1999.

Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said the supposed plot is baseless.

“However, this latest twist where they include themselves is an insertion of themselves into the plot. It’s rather pathetic,” he said.

The NDFP, commenting on Año’s latest statement, said the AFP chief “is completely unqualified to posture as an honest person and to cast invectives against Prof. Sison who is the target of the first stage of the military plot.”

The NDFP also said it is not recommending psychiatric treatment for Año “because he is obviously an irredeemably cold-blooded and cunning butcher.”

“It is his boss Rodrigo R. Duterte who needs urgent professional psychiatric help for trusting him too much and other military officers who have consistently sabotaged the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations,” the NDFP said.

http://www.malaya.com.ph/business-news/news/ndfp-a%C3%B1o-continue-trade-barbs