TIP-OFF. A former New People’s Army militiaman yields to the Army and discloses the whereabouts of the rebels' arms cache in Impasugong, Bukidnon province, on Aug. 27, 2022. The ex-rebel says he served the rebel group as a courier for arms and supplies. (Photo courtesy of 16IB)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—A former "Militia ng Bayan" member of the New People’s Army (NPA) has led government troopers to the location of the rebels' arms cache in Bukidnon, the military said Monday.
In a statement, the Army’s 16th Infantry Battalion (16IB) said the former militia, only known as "Labay," pinpointed the rebels’ hideout and arms cache in Barangay Hagpa, Impasugong, Bukidnon, on Aug. 27.
2Lt Valerie Mae Jequinto, the 16IB's civil-military officer, said Labay used to be an NPA courier and was responsible for the purchase and delivery of supplies for the NPA before he surrendered to the Army.
"Labay tipped off to the troops the site where he hid the cache which contains one US Caliber30 M1 Springfield Rifle, 10 pieces of hand grenades, two improvised explosive devices, and ammunition," Jequinto said in the statement.
The 16IB believes the cooperation of Labay "significantly impacts the campaign of the national government to end local communist armed conflict."
Early this month, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) awarded a total of PHP11.8 million to 251 former rebels through the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon.
Each surrenderer received PHP15,000 as immediate assistance, among other benefits.
Bukidnon Governor Rogelio Neil Roque said the program for former rebels is proof that the government has always attended to the needs of ex-rebels.
"It's been decades since this insurgency started, and today I did not see any reason that we brothers and sisters fought each other for the sake of belief and dignity," Roque said.
The Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
The Anti-Terrorism Council also formally designated the National Democratic Front as a terrorist organization on June 23, 2021, citing it as “an integral and inseparable part” of the CPP-NPA that was created in April 1973. (PNA)
