FILE PHOTO: Young New Peoples Army (NPA) rebels stand in formation during the anniversary of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) in a town in Misamis Oriental province on Dec. 26, 2016. (Jigger J. Jerusalem)
MANILA, Philippines — The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) on Monday admitted that its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), suffered from setbacks in previous years.
However, CPP spokesperson Marco Valbuena said that the NPA is far from defeated in response to the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) assertion that the Maoist armed group has no more active guerrilla fronts.
READ: ‘There are no more active guerilla fronts,’ declares AFP
“Despite having suffered from setbacks over the past years, the NPA is far from defeated,” Valbuena said in a statement.
“Under the guidance of the Party, the NPA has learned its lessons and is determined to frustrate the AFP’s brutal offensives,” he added.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. reiterated AFP’s claim over the weekend, which Valbuena said left the NPA “incredulous.”
READ: Marcos: No active NPA guerrilla fronts as of December 2023
“Marcos Jr. is in dreamland when he claims there are no more active NPA guerrilla fronts,” the official also stressed.
“The NPA will make sure that it will outlast Marcos, just like it outlasted his father,” he added.
The NPA is now down to about 1,500 members as of Dec. 2023, far from its peak of around 25,000 in 1987, according to AFP spokesperson Col. Medel Aguilar.
READ: NPA down to around 1,500 fighters–AFP
Established on March 29, 1969, the NPA has been waging the longest-running Maoist insurgency in the world.
CPP’s political wing, the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, is now exploring the possibility of resuming peace talks with the government.