INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Properties destroyed by communist rebels reached P300 million in the first nine months of 2014, the military said on Tuesday, Oct. 7.
This is despite the military’s claims that they have gained the upperhand in dealing with insurgency.
Lt. Gen. Aurelio Baladad, chief of the Armed Forces Eastern Mindanao Command, said the New People’s Army torched P300-million worth of equipment in the first nine months of the year, a huge increase from the previous year.
“Last year is around a tenth of that, it is around 30 million plus something, so the increase is tenfold,” he said.
Baladad also claimed that the communist rebels was able to extort about P30 million from businesses this year, based on military estimates.
“For me, it is disturbing because we want to attract investors here so we must have peace and order. Businessmen are after stability so we are aligning our forces so that we can prevent their acts,” he said.
He added that they are working on a system to protect investors.
Baladad’s jurisdiction includes Davao, parts of Northern Mindanao, Caraga and Soccsksargen. Most NPA in the country are in these regions, with about 40 percent in Davao and Caraga.
The military has been consistent with their claims that they have been able to reduce insurgency with their anti-insurgency campaign, the Internal Peace Security Plan Bayanihan. But since its implementation, figures remained at about 4,000 nationwide in the last four years.
“Yung nakikita ko they would also would like to project their strength kasi medyo stalled yung peace talks natin e. So pinapakita nila na ito malakas pa kami, mag-usap tayo, I think that is there message here. Sa amin naman kasi sa gobyerno yes gusto nating mag-usap tayo, we are open to peace talks,” Baladad said.