Amid wins, mission not yet over – VISCOM

From the Visayan Daily Star (Jan 21, 2024): Amid wins, mission not yet over – VISCOM (By GILBERT P. BAYORAN)

Despite excellent accomplishments of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Visayas Command in 2023, Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo, its commander, declared “Our mission is definitely not over.”

Though we made significant progress in our campaign in the previous year, Arevalo said there are still issues in the community that they must address, and the neutralization of New People’s Army remnants lurking in the hinterlands.

If these are not addressed, these could cause a resurgence of the terrorist group in the Visayas region, he added.

Among all the Unified Commands of the AFP, military records showed that VISCOM topped all parameters in defeating the CPP-NPA, with five NPA guerilla fronts dismantled.

All the five NPA guerilla fronts in Negros Island have been declared “dismantled” by the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division, as of December 31 last year, inching closer towards its target of declaring Negros Island as “insurgency free,” by the first quarter of 2024.

Of the 299 NPA rebels neutralized last year in Visayas, VISCOM records further indicated that 62 died during encounters, 19 were apprehended, and 218 returned to the folds of the law. In the same period, 445 firearms were recovered, while all NPA-infested communities in the Visayas have been cleared from the clutches of the terrorist group.

“For the first time in my years of service in the Visayas, VISCOM has topped all the parameters in terms of accomplishment. This is a manifestation that if we really do our best and do away with unnecessary efforts that are not contributory to our campaign, the best result will come, especially when we are doing this for our country and the Filipino people,” Arevalo told AFP commanders during a Command conference at Camp Lapulapu in Cebu City.

He also emphasized that the VISCOM accomplishments have been validated by the Filipino people, citing the latest result of the Satisfaction Survey conducted by OCTA Research Group.

Of the 85 percent satisfaction rating achieved by the AFP in the entire country, it is in the Visayas region where the highest satisfaction rating was attained, with 93 percent of the respondents expressing that they are satisfied with our internal security efforts, Arevalo further said.

Aside from its accomplishments in internal security operations, VISCOM is reported to have sustained and facilitated the implementation of 739 community development projects in the far-flung communities in the entire region of Visayas.

Arevalo also credited the VISCOM accomplishments to the support of their “partner agencies, private sectors, non-government organizations, and most especially our people, as we declare in one voice that terrorism has no place in this peace-loving, humane and civilized society.”

Arevalo also ordered Visayas commanders to sustain their gains and continue their relentless efforts in ending the local communist armed conflict in the Visayas region.

“We should not be complacent. We should not sit down on our laurels and relax. We still have so much to do. There are still remnants of the CPP-NPA that we have to pursue and neutralize, for us to ensure that the well-being of our people is protected and the democratic way of life in the region is sustained.”*

https://visayandailystar.com/amid-wins-mission-not-yet-over-viscom/