SURRENDERED. Alias "Claire" hands over a short firearm to Capt. Ricci Nikki Emmanuel Detruz of the Eastern Visayas police regional mobile force company on Wednesday (Sept. 29, 2021) in Carigara, Leyte. She surrendered to policemen after week-long negotiations. (Photo courtesy of Philippine National Police)
TACLOBAN CITY – A female ranking official of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Leyte surrendered on Wednesday as the government heightened its drive against the communist terrorist group, the Philippine National Police (PNP) reported on Thursday.
In Carigara, Leyte, alias "Claire", 28, a native of General MacArthur, Eastern Samar, surrendered to operatives of the PNP Regional Mobile Force Company and PNP Regional and Provincial Intelligence Units.
She turned over a caliber .9mm pistol with one magazine assembly loaded with eight ammunition.
Claire was a member of Caloy platoon under the command of NPA’s Eastern Visayas sub-regional front committee and joined the movement in 2011 when she was 18 years old.
She served as education, medical, finance, liaison, intelligence officer, and squad vice commander.
“She surrendered after a series of negotiations that started as early as Sept. 10, 2021 through intensified joint efforts of PNP units. She could no longer bear the hardships she experienced with the rebel group. She also longed to be with her three children and want to send them to school,” the PNP said in its report sent to journalists.
Carigara town has been the center of the government’s anti-insurgency campaign in Leyte after the NPA managed to recruit new members by organizing the Municipal Upland Farmers Association in Carigara in 2016.
There are still less than 20 NPA remnants hiding in the town’s thick forest as of mid-2021, according to the military.
The town is about 48 kilometers northwest of this regional capital. It is a second-class town with a population of over 54,000.
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP)-NPA, which has been waging a five-decade armed struggle against the government, is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines. (PNA)
