Duterte: Communist insurgency in the Philippines ‘a failed dream’

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte ALFRED FRIAS/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – The 50-year insurgency of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) is a “failed dream,” President Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday, as he again criticized the rebels and branded them as “extortionists.”

Duterte also dismissed the alleged goal of communist rebels to take over government as “stupid thinking.”

“Hindi mo makuha ang Pilipinas, hindi mo makuha ang isang barangay sa isang araw tapos papasok ka ng ganoong patayan?” Duterte said in a speech during the Barangay Summit on Peace and Order in Pasay City.

The President said he could easily order the military to bomb mountains where the rebels are hiding.

“Ako nagho-hold lang talaga ako, napakarami kong helicopter, sabi ko ‘wag muna,” he said.

“Linisan mo ‘yang buong gubat, plantsahin mo ‘yan ng bala. Nagho-hold lang talaga ako,” he added.

The rebels, according to Duterte, have been “an irritation” for the government.

“‘Wag ka maniwala diyan sa ano [revolution]… it’s a failed dream,” he declared.

He even suggested to the military not to take rebel returnees anymore, and again threatened to issue a “shoot-to-kill” order on NPA.

“Anong mangyari pag orderin ko ‘yan sa military na shoot-to-kill? ‘Wag na kayo magkuha ng prisoner, basta deretso na lahat,” he said.

But despite his harsh words, the Chief Executive said the government is still leaving a “small window” for peace talks.

“Nag-iwan ako ng konting butas, small window. Just in case you want to resume, at least there is a window where we can use,” Duterte said. /kga