NextGen Day

MANILA, Philippines — The significant accomplishments made by the Regional Task Force to End Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-ELCAC) in the war against the communist terrorist New People’s Army (NPA) in Region 13 (Caraga) will be highlighted during President Rodrigo Duterte’s scheduled visit to the region on Tuesday.

Hermogenes Esperon Jr., deputy chair of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), said on Monday that Duterte would meet with local leaders in Caraga and observe for himself the progress made in terms of peace and development.

According to Esperon, around 83 percent of rebel returns were recruited by the NPA from the ranks of the IP (Indigenous Peoples) sector, according to intelligence data from 2021.

Caraga is home to a number of IP communities and has been the target of communist terrorist propaganda and disinformation campaigns.

The IP communities are considered a priority of the government’s intervention and development initiatives because of their geographical and social limitations, according to Esperon.

Esperon, who is also the National Security Adviser, said the Caraga has historically been one of the country’s hotbeds of communist terrorism.

There were 11 guerilla fronts (GFs) in Region 13 at the start of the Duterte administration in 2016.

“Three of these GFs have been entirely disassembled since then, while the other two have been substantially weakened. Our security troops are in the process of clearing the last six GFs “Esperon remarked.

“In fact, the joint efforts of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police (AFP-PNP) had neutralized 978 NPA regulars and captured 290 firearms in less than three years. I’d like to call attention to the neutralization of 37 CTG high-ranking officers in the region “Added he.

The closure of Caraga’s RTF-Alternative ELCAC’s Learning Center for Agriculture and Livelihood Development and Tribal Filipino Program in Surigao del Sur in 2020 is another noteworthy achievement.

These schools were discovered to be functioning illegally with the goal of radicalizing and indoctrinating the youth and IP sectors in preparation for recruitment as NPA armed combatants.

“According to the state of the Caraga Region’s Barangay Development Program for 2021, the flagship program encompassed 191 barangays with a total of 359 infrastructure and non-infrastructure priority projects. Another 94 barangays in the region have been added as BDP recipients for 2022. Three in Butuan City, eight in Agusan del Norte, 45 in Agusan del Sur, 20 in Surigao del Norte, and 18 in Surigao del Sur are among the BDP beneficiaries for 2022 “Esperon remarked.

He commended Duterte for his “unwavering support and inspiring leadership” during the insurgency’s demise.

“With the eventual collapse of the CPP-NPA (Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA), the Duterte administration is on the verge of leaving a conflict-free and the development-ready Philippines as its legacy,” he continued.

Local officials from the region, Cabinet members, national officials, top personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police, and NTF-ELCAC are anticipated to attend the presidential visit.

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