INDIGNATION. A resident of Claveria, Misamis Oriental burns a flag of the New People’s Army during a rally that condemned rebel atrocities in the town. (Jigger J. Jerusalem)
MANILA, Philippines — A total of 1,546 local government units (LGUs) nationwide have declared members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) as persona non grata in their localities, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said Friday.
In a statement, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said that out of the 1,715 LGUs nationwide, 1,546 of these — namely 64 provinces, 110 cities and 1,372 municipalities — have passed resolutions declaring members of the group as persona non grata.
Meanwhile, the remaining 169 LGUs, Año added, are in “various stages of deliberation in their respective provincial, city, and municipal councils.”
The DILG said that based on its records, six out of the 17 regions nationwide have already reached a 100 percent declaration of persona non grata to the CPP-NPA-NDF members, namely Central Luzon, Central Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan) and Cordillera Administrative Region.
Interior Secretary Eduardo Año. INQUIRER.net file photo / NOY MORCOSO
In Metro Manila, Año said that nine of the Metro Manila LGUs have already passed resolutions declaring the CPP-NPA-NDF as persona non grata – Caloocan, Las Piñas, Mandaluyong, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Pasig, Quezon, San Juan, and Valenzuela.
Valenzuela Mayor Rex Gatchalian, in a text message to INQUIRER.net, confirmed that the city has declared the Communists rebels as persona non grata.
“Much like the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, we need to finally end this very old problem using a whole-of-nation approach, and the support from our LGUs gives us great assurance that we are not alone in this war against these atheists, Maoists terrorists,” Año said.
The DILG chief added that he is expecting more LGUs to declare the communist rebels persona non grata.
“The DILG is looking forward to seeing more LGUs join us in this fight against Communist terrorism. We cannot allow these groups to continue killing people, the time has come to finally put an end to their wicked ways,” he added.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) earlier recommended to President Rodrigo Duterte not to declare a suspension of military operations with the NPA during he Christmas holiday season, and pointed out that the other side showed “incapacity for sincerity and for being unfaithful to a covenant….many times in the past.”
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (MALACAÑANG PHOTO)
Duterte, in a taped address Monday night, heeded with the AFP’s recommendation, and declared that there will be no ceasefire with communist rebels this holiday season — or “ever again” — during his term as President.
In the same address, Duterte also declared that the peace talks with the NDF were likewise “dead.