MARCHING ORDER | In this file photo, Army troops stand at attention as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. speaks during the 126th founding anniversary of the Philippine Army in Fort Bonifacio. (FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has told the military to intensify its fight against terrorist financing to ensure that communist rebels would no longer have the platform to finance their operations.
In a situation briefing at Camp General Macario Peralta Jr. in Jamindan, Capiz, on Friday, the president expressed confidence that Western Visayas would soon be free from communist insurgency given the decreasing number of communist rebels in the region.
“Keep the pressure going … I know that the other units are also doing it in terms of the financing. But perhaps, you could put more emphasis on that,” said Marcos, who was in Capiz on Friday to distribute sacks of seized smuggled rice and cash assistance to indigent families in the province.
Based on the report by Maj. Gen. Marion Sison, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division of the Philippine Army, to the president, the armed group is taking advantage of minority groups, usually the indigenous peoples.
“They would pose as a humanitarian group who seeks financing from international institutions but the money they would get from the approved project proposals they submit abroad would not be remitted fully to the projects of their target minority groups,” Presidential Communications Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil said in a statement.
In July this year, the president signed Executive Order (EO) No. 33, or the National Anti-Money Laundering, Counter-Terrorism Financing, and Counter-Proliferation Financing Strategy (NACS) 2023-2027.
The EO directed government agencies to adopt a new strategy against money laundering and counterterrorism financing.
The president, according to Garafil, is optimistic that declaring the Western Visayas region as “insurgency-free” was achievable.
‘It’s achievable’
“We must keep on going and we’ll wait for your invitation to come back when you declare this area insurgent-free … I think it’s achievable,” Marcos said.
In September this year, Marcos officially declared Palawan free from communist insurgency while the Davao region was also declared “insurgency-free” last year.
National Security Adviser Eduardo Año, a former military chief, said in September that the decades-long communist insurgency in the country would end during Marcos’ term.
“What we can see in the term of [President Marcos] is, finally, we can put an end to the local armed communist conflict, and from there, we will pursue developments and ensure the delivery of services,” Año said.
But he admitted: “While we may not be able to attain this zero insurgents, but at least reduced to an irrelevant number that will not cause concern for peace and order.”
In his second State of the Nation Address in July, the president said he would issue a proclamation granting amnesty to rebel returnees to complete their reintegration into society.
After more than half a century of armed struggle, he said, “We have now progressed together toward peace and development.”