Arms cache unearthed in E. Samar town’s upland village

From the Philippine News Agency (Jul 19, 2023): Arms cache unearthed in E. Samar town’s upland village (By Sarwell Meniano)

SEIZED. Some of the high-powered firearms and banned explosives were buried by the New People’s Army (NPA) in an upland village of Can-avid, Eastern Samar. The Philippine Army found the arms cache on Wednesday (July 19, 2023) through a tip from a former rebel. (Photo courtesy of the Philippine Army)

TACLOBAN CITY – Acting on a tip from a former rebel, troopers from the Philippine Army recovered an arms cache in an upland village of Can-avid, Eastern Samar on Wednesday.

Lt. Col. Rodito Gotladera, commander of the Philippine Army’s 42nd Infantry Battalion, said in a statement that unearthed firearms in upland Buco village in Can-avid town included five M14 rifles, four M16 rifles, a shotgun, an M79 grenade launcher, a banned anti-personnel mines, and other war materiel.

Before this recovery, a former rebel recently disclosed to soldiers the exact location of the buried arms cache.

“We will be stepping up our military and non-military operations to track down the location of the remaining NPA members, and their loose firearms, and prevent their recovery efforts here in Eastern Samar. Today’s recovery significantly blows the capacity of communist rebels on their nefarious acts,” Gotladera said.

He reiterated the Army's commitment to intensify efforts to locate more firearms hidden by armed rebels and prevent them from “recovering their lost ground” in Eastern Samar.

Philippine Army 8th Infantry Division commander Major Gen. Camilo Ligayo commended the 42nd Infantry Battalion for their accomplishments that contributed to the mission of ending the decades-long insurgency problem.

“We will have intensified operations, especially in Northern Samar, and in no time we will be able to dismantle the one remaining guerilla front. During the visit of President Bongbong Marcos he said that he is confident that we can finish the fight against the insurgents by the end of the year in the region,” Ligayo added.

Some upland villages in Can-avid, a 4th class town in Eastern Samar, used to be the hiding places of the NPA.

In October 2020, government troops had a gun battle with 25 NPA combatants in Can-avid where three soldiers were wounded while an undetermined casualty was reported on the side of rebels.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1205935