Palace twits Reds: ‘Ideologues-turned-extortionists’

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella. TOTO LOZANO/Presidential Photo (FILE)

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) seemed to have “deteriorated from ideologues to plain criminals and extortionists,” Malacañang said Saturday.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella issued the statement after CPP founder Jose Maria “Joma” Sison hit the Duterte administration as puppet of US imperialism.

Duterte on Thursday dared Sison, who is on exile in the Netherlands, to return to the country and lead the communist insurgents as their word war heated up following the President’s decision to end peace talks with the communist rebels.

“Come home and fight your war here,” Duterte said.

READ: Duterte challenges Joma to ‘return home and fight here’

But Sison said he would return to the Philippines on his own terms and not due to Duterte’s coercion.

READ: Joma: I’ll return to PH on my terms

“I do not have to prove again that I have the revolutionary will and courage to wage armed struggle against oppression,” he said.

“If deemed necessary by the revolutionary movement, I will return  to the Philippines to fight the Duterte puppet regime of US imperialism,” he added.

But Abella dismissed Sison’s remarks, saying his remarks only highlighted his disconnect with the communist guerillas on the ground.

“Mr. Sison’s remarks only highlight his apparent disconnect with their men and women on the ground who seem to have deteriorated from ideologues to plain criminals and extortionists,” he said.

“It is unfortunate he needs to be coaxed to return to his homeland, while his wounded comrades in the mountains in the Philippines are left dying only for our soldiers to rescue and accord medical care,” he added.

Abella said Sison was living a comfortable life in Europe while his comrades were fighting in the Philippines.

“Mr. Sison apparently took to the soft life in Europe, leaving his comrades to fend for themselves. No wonder they are only too eager now to demand their unearned portions,” he said.

The word war between Sison and Duterte stepped up after the series of attacks by communist rebels on government troops, the last of which was against Duterte’s security team.

The series of attacks prompted Duterte to end the peace talks with the rebels, who have been waging war against the government for almost five decades now. IDL