Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, Spokesperson of Armed Forces of the Philippines (Arnel Tacson, INQUIRER.net)
MANILA – The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday said its plan to defeat the communist insurgents is “well within target”.
In a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview, AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said they are waiting for the declaration of a “weakened guerilla front” into a “cleared” one.
“So ito, nilalakad na din na ma-declare na ito as insurgency-free ang [mga] areas na ito and with that, kapag matapos natin ito within December (We are working to have these localities declared into insurgent-free areas, and once we complete this within December), we are well within targets,” she added.
Once achieved, Padilla said the AFP can focus on its territorial defense missions.
In a command conference in January this year, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. ordered the AFP to defeat the country’s insurgency problem once and for all.
Padilla said from Jan. 1 to Nov. 14, a total of 2,319 “communist terrorist group (members) and supporters” were neutralized.
Of this number, 2,042 surrendered to government forces while another 140 were arrested with 137 killed in military operations.
“Ang panawagan po namin, sa mga naiiwan na lang na miyembro po ng New People’s Army na magbalik-loob na po sa pamahalaan ang let’s fight a bigger challenge together (Our call to the remaining members of the New People’s Army is they return to the fold of the government and help us fight a bigger challenge together),” Padilla said. (PNA)