BG Party-list first nominee Alelee Andanar (Contributed photo)
CEBU CITY – BG (Bisaya Gyud) party-list joins poll of government offices and local communities pushing for the sustained implementation of the Duterte administration's anti-insurgency efforts through the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
First nominee Alelee Andanar on Wednesday said the whole-of-nation approach created a significant change to the lives of communities who were tormented by the communist groups for decades, and also helped former rebels reintegrate safely.
“Talagang ramdam po ang pagbaba ng national government sa mga barangay at liblib na mga lugar sa pamamagitan ng Barangay Development Program. Tinutugunan ng programang ito ang mga ugat ng insurhensya tulad ng kahirapan, kawalan ng trabaho, serbisyo ng gobyerno at mga imprastruktura (I can really feel the decline of the national government in the barangays and remote areas through the Barangay Development Program. This program addresses the roots of insurgency such as poverty, unemployment, government services and infrastructure),” she said in a news release on Wednesday.
“Dahil dito, libu-libo na po ang nagbalik-loob, nabuwag ang maraming guerrilla fronts at nabawasan ang mga NPA-infested barangays. Ang mga nagbalik-loob na rebelde naman ay binigyan ng tulong, second chance na magbagong buhay, at mga oportunidad (As a result, thousands have surrendered, many guerrilla fronts have been dismantled and New People’s Army-infested barangays have been reduced. Surrendered rebels were given help, a second chance to change their lives, and opportunities,” she added.
Andanar also hoped that whoever sits as the next president of the country will recognize the gains that the policy has given to provide a safe and progressive countryside.
The Executive Order 70 signed by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte in December 2018 created the NTF-ELCAC which heralded the beginning of a proactive and inclusive approach to address the problem of insurgency and violence perpetrated by local armed groups.
By creating the task force and adopting a National Peace Framework, the government was able to streamline projects dedicated to diminishing the force of the communist terrorist groups (CTGs) and finally end the five-decade presence of insurgency in the country.
Second nominee, lawyer Mico Clavano, meanwhile, called for the remaining members of the CTGs to return to the fold of the law.
“Apela ko sa mga kapatid nating naligaw ng landas, sumuko na po kayo sa gobyerno dahil wala pong patutunguhan ang inyong pakipagbakbakan. Iba na ang gobyerno ngayon, may puso at malasakit sa mga Pilipino (I appeal to our brothers and sisters who have lost their way, surrender to the government because your struggle has no destination. The government is different now, with compassion and concern for Filipinos),” he said. (PR)
