Irked by Sorsogon attack, Duterte orders shoot to kill of all NPA rebels

DAVAO CITY— President Duterte has expressed the futility of pursuing talks with the communist-led National Democratic Front (NDF), warning that he would soon stop accepting surrenderers from the New People’s Army (NPA) and would order the rebels killed instead.

He ordered the “hamletting” of all lumad villages for the “protection” of the indigenous people.

This was after he expressed frustration over the Sorsogon attack that was carried out despite the declaration of a unilateral ceasefire by the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).

“I no longer believe this could be done through the talks,” Duterte said. “They were the ones who declared a unilateral ceasefire, I did not ask for it, but they were also the one who launched the attack in Sorsogon and here in the region, they killed the wife of a Cafgu.”

READ: 4 hurt in NPA attack in Sorsogon town police station

“If you are something, you would not mess up with the families (referring to the wife of the Cafgu personnel), they are not part of this,” he said.

The President also urged barangay captains and the lumad to help in the fight against the NPA. “You have to fight, I don’t expect you to be open, but soon, once I put the soldiers there, you should not be far away,” he added.

“If you’re a barangay captain and you don’t know how to kill a person, huwag ka nang mag barangay captain,” he added.

The President also said that he will distribute 2,000 land titles in the next few days.

“I will give you land,” he told the lumad tribal leaders at the gathering, “The next day, I will distribute 2,000 land titles, I distribute land titles faster than the NPA. The NPA’s land titles have no ink,” he said.

He warned that the fight against the NPA would soon turn bloody.

“They are just plain bandits and that should be the way to treat them,” he said, referring to his order to shoot the rebels. /ee