MANILA, Philippines — The local government of Balangiga, Eastern Samar province on Monday (April 13) passed a resolution supporting a military report that communist rebels took relief goods given to residents for COVID-19 aid but saying that “robbery” or “forcibly taken” were terms too strong to describe what the rebels did.
The resolution just the same condemned the rebel action which came while the entire province of Eastern Samar, including Balangiga, was enforcing an enhanced community quarantine against COVID-19.
It came after the municipality initially denied the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) report claiming that the rebels last April 7 took relief goods in some villages of the town, which had become famous for church bells that were taken as war trophies by American colonizers and had been returned to the town recently.
Balangiga Mayor Randy Graza and other town officials had told local media that they have not received such reports from villagers.
But the local officials and the military were able to clarify things during a municipal peace and order council meeting last Monday.
“The AFP officials stated that the word ‘robbery’ or ‘forcibly taken’ may have been too strong in describing what happened but the fact remains that the residents were forced to give a portion of their relief to the NPA,” part of the resolution dated April 13 read. The report said rebels took half a sack of rice from each resident.
The AFP leadership, in a statement on Tuesday (April 14), said it stood firm on the Army 8th Infantry Division’s account of what the rebels did.
The report, the AFP statement said, had been validated by a report of the 8th ID chief, Maj. Gen. Pio Dinoso, which has jurisdiction over the area.
Dinoso, the AFP statement added, “maintains that the incident happened” and that the mayor, “in a recent development, admits that, indeed the NPA seized part of the relief goods intended for his constituents.”
The military said it was willing to help local government units distribute relief packs, even to communist rebels, if the LGUs asked for help from the national government.