Former NPA rebels hired as forest guards in Borongan City

TACLOBAN CITY — The Borongan City government in Eastern Samar has tapped former rebels to serve as forest guards.

Borongan City Mayor Jose Ivan Dayan Agda said the initiative, launched on Sept. 11, was aimed to bolster the city’s environmental conservation efforts while promoting peace and reintegration of former insurgents into society.

Twenty-nine former members of the New People’s Army (NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, were sworn in as deputized environment and natural resources officers by Agda and Department of Environment and Natural Resources Regional Executive Director Lormelyn Claudio.

In a phone interview on Sept. 21, Agda said engaging former rebels as forest rangers aligns with his administration’s broader efforts to tackle the social and economic issues that drive individuals toward insurgency.

“We hired these former rebels because, as residents of Borongan, they know the terrain and, more importantly, we want to give them a second chance to live a normal life,” the mayor said.

“It is my duty to provide them with reasons not to return to insurgency and to offer them the good life they’ve long deserved through this program,” he added.

Agda hoped that the program would help resolve the insurgency problem not only in Borongan but in the entire Eastern Samar.

While those employed as forest guards have returned to the folds of the law, he said some active NPA rebels in remote villages hail from other municipalities within the province.

The mayor also emphasized that addressing poverty, one of the root causes of the insurgency, is critical to solving the problem.

“Poverty is one of the main reasons people turn against the government. By providing livelihood opportunities, like employing them as forest guards, we are addressing this issue head on,” he added.

Borongan City has a history of insurgency-related violence.

In 2019, six soldiers were killed while 20 others were wounded after they were ambushed by rebels in Barangay Pinanang-an.

Last Jan. 6, 2024, a top NPA rebel identified as Martin Colima, was killed in an encounter with government troops in Barangay San Gabriel, also in Borongan City.

Aside from addressing insurgency, Agda expressed his deep commitment to forest conservation, recognizing the vital role forests play in protecting Borongan City from natural disasters such as typhoons and flooding.

“Borongan is in a typhoon belt, and preserving our forests is essential to safeguarding our communities from natural calamities,” he said.