by Miriam G. Desacada
Catbalogan City–Government peace and security authorities in Region 8 have formally announced yesterday the dismantling of two NPA units in Eastern Visayas on March 3.
This declaration was made during a meeting of the Regional Peace and Order Council-8 (RPOC-8) held at Camp Vicente Lukban in Catbalogan City of Samar, the headquarters of the 8th Infantry Division (8ID), and attended by members of the military and the police, Coast Guard, and the National Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Council (NJPSCC).
The dismantled NPA units were identified as 1) the Platoon 2 of Island Committee 47 (P2IC47) Levox, which was operating in the provinces of Leyte, Biliran, and Southern Leyte; and 2) the Elcon Platoon of Sub-Regional Committee (SRC) Browser, which was operating in the provinces of Samar and Eastern Samar.
Earlier in January this year, the Joint Task Force Storm—headed by 8ID commander, Major General Camilo Ligayo, declared the dismantling of four guerilla fronts (GFs) in Eastern Visayas: 1) the Front Committee 2 of SRC Emporium; 2) Front Committee 1 of SRC Emporium; 3) Front Committee 15 of SRC Arctic; and 4) Front Committee 3 of SRC Arctic.
The newly dismantled Elcon Platoon of SRC Browser were remnants of the dismantled Central Front Samar 1 and Front Committee 3 of SRC Arctic, while the P2 IC47 Levox was created by the NPA to re-establish a GF in Leyte, Biliran, and Southern Leyte provinces.
Ligayo said the dismantling of the two NPA units and, earlier, the four GFs, are attributed to the effective implementation of programs under the National Task Force–Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), which is the government’s whole-of-nation approach to end insurgency in the country.
“This is the fruit of the aggressive campaign of the security sectors against insurgency,” said the general.
Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez, chairman of the RPOC-8, said these remarkable successes reflect the collective efforts and commitment of all units under the JTF Storm, and the Regional TF-ELCAC in Eastern Visayas.
“ELCAC has proven that, through collaborative efforts, we can surely eradicate the remaining local communist groups. The problem of insurgency is everyone’s responsibility, so let us continue to be united in this quest of ending local communist armed conflict to attain long and lasting peace, and socio-economic progress among our communities,” Romualdez said.
Ligayo added: “Let us actively support the programs of the local governments to peacefully resolve all armed conflicts in Eastern Visayas. Let us encourage everybody to follow the path of peace and condemn those who advocate violence and the use of arms. Let us condemn the armed struggle and NPA atrocities and give peace a chance.” —-Miriam G. Desacada