Another NPA member yields in Aurora

From the Philippine News Agency (Mar 24, 2021): Another NPA member yields in Aurora (By Jason De Asis)

LAID DOWN HIS ARMS. A former communist terrorist group (CTG) member and political guide of Sandatahang Yunit Pampropaganda-Central of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army operating in Aurora surrendered to government troops on Tuesday afternoon (March 23, 2021). The surrenderer also turned over his .38 caliber revolver to authorities. (Photo by Baler Police Station)

BALER, Aurora – A 32-year-old former communist terrorist group (CTG) member and political guide of Sandatahang Yunit Pampropaganda (SYP) Central of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) operating in this province surrendered to government troops on Tuesday afternoon.

Maj. Ferdinand B. Usita, chief police of Baler Police Station, said on Wednesday that the surrenderer, whose name was withheld, also turned over his .38 caliber revolver to authorities.

Aside from the firearm, Usita said the former rebel also handed over subversive documents for safekeeping.

The surrenderer is now under the custody of Baler Police Station for custodial debriefing.

Usita said the former rebel can apply for the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) and if qualified will be given a holistic package of benefits such as livelihood, medical, education, housing, and legal assistance.

He also encouraged the remaining members of the CTG to heed the government’s call for peace and live happily with their loved ones.

“Our anti-insurgency efforts will be relentless to ensure the safety of the people in Baler. We are also helping those who are willing to give up their anti-government activities,” he added in an interview.

Usita is confident that the multi-pronged approach of Executive Order 70, signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in December 2018, will put an end to the treacherous life cycle of the more than five decades of insurgency.

He said that the EO 70 also created National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) that institutionalizes a whole-of-nation approach in obtaining exclusive and sustainable peace-giving as an effective solution against communist terrorists.

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1134667