ANTI-NPA RECRUITMENT. Some 350 students of San Jose National High School attend an information drive led by the Philippine Air Force on Nov. 30, 2019, which is aimed at shielding the youth from the emerging recruitments of the New People’s Army (NPA). The initiative is part of the inter-agency effort to end local communist armed conflicts in the country. (PNA photo by Gerico A. Sabalza)
TACLOBAN CITY – The Philippine Air Force (PAF) in Eastern Visayas is reaching out to high school campuses here to deter recruitment attempts by the New People’s Army (NPA) among teens.
On Saturday, Air Force personnel led a community peace development forum at San Jose National High School (SJNHS) in this city joined by 350 students.
Salvacion Maquelan, SJNHS head teacher, said the initiative is vital in providing proper information to students regarding their real purpose in attending school.
“These students are very vulnerable, so from time to time, they must be given quality information and services to realize their potentials as an asset in our communities. They must be given awareness on the recruitment works of rebel groups,” said Maquelan.
The initiative is part of fulfilling the PAF’s role as a member of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) created by Executive Order (EO) 70.
The directive issued in December 2018 seeks to establish a "whole-of-nation" approach in ending local communist armed conflict.
“We adopted this initiative of the headquarters because of the emerging recruitments of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA in universities and communities. Some NPA members who surrendered and captured during encounters are as young as 16, 17, and 18 years old,” said Lt. Col. Myroade De Leon, PAF Eastern Visayas group commander.
These rounds of campus-based forums are not only meant for students, he said, but also for educators to help spare the youth from the persuasions of NPA’s front organizations that could lead to armed rebellion.
In the region, the air force team has tied up with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, National Economic and Development Authority and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency in educating the students about EO 70, the economic effects of the insurgencies, and the forms of recruitment of the rebel group.
Recently, the military confirmed NPA recruitment in schools following the arrest of Rey Christian Sabado, 22 in Las Navas, Northern Samar; Louie, 17, in Hinabangan, Samar; and Aljon Cardenas, 19 in Victoria, Northern Samar.
The Air Force has initially conducted a similar forum in two of the biggest universities in the region, the Leyte Normal University and Eastern Visayas State University main campus both in Tacloban.
The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines. (PNA)
