Google map of Loreto town, Agusan del Sur.
BUTUAN CITY – Residents of a far-flung village in the town of Loreto in Agusan del Sur have affirmed their full support to the government by declaring the communist New People’s Army (NPA) as persona non grata.
In a community gathering facilitated on July 1, village leaders and members of Barangay Kasapa 1, Loreto denounced the NPA for "causing havoc" in their barangay and hampering the government's delivery of basic services in the area, according to the Army's 30th Infantry Battalion in a statement Friday (July 3).
Aside from the armed NPA, the villagers also declared the legal fronts of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the National Democratic Front (NDF) no longer welcome into their barangay, the 60IB said.
The residents were joined by 48 former rebels, the NPA's Milisya ng Bayan (MB), and members of the rebel movement's Underground Mass Organizations (UGMO), who also pledged allegiance to the government during the activity, the Army battalion said.
Prior to the persona non grata declaration against the NPA, 60IB said Kasapa 1 villagers underwent a three-day peace-building seminar joined by different line agencies of the government.
The seminar includes an orientation on the different programs of the government, the de-radicalization process, and the orientation on the Community Support Program (CSP) of the Army, 60IB said.
The residents also received various services from the government during the activity, such as free medical check-ups, provision of medicines, while the children received school kits from the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office of Agusan del Sur.
The event was graced by Agusan del Sur Governor Santiago Cane Jr., Vice Gov. Sammy Turtor, Loreto Mayor Lorife Magadan Otaza and Agusan del Sur Provincial Police Office director, Col. Ringo Zarzoso.
Top military officials present during the activity were Maj. Gen. Reuben Basiao, commander of the Army's 10th Infantry Division; Col. Luis Rex Brigante, commander of 101st Infantry Brigade; and Lt. Col. Ronaldo Sarmiento of the 60IB.
The CPP-NPA-NDF is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines. (PNA)
