BACOLOD CITY – The Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) on Thursday declared there is no security threat in the northern part of the province, after reports of recruitment activity of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) members in Cadiz City.
Col. Rainerio de Chavez, officer in charge of NOCPPO, said that based on the records of the Philippine National Police (PNP), there is no MNLF in Western Visayas.
“We assure the public that the police is on board. We don’t see any threat to the security of the people of Cadiz,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council meeting at the Capitol Social Hall here.
De Chavez said they are investigating to determine the group’s purpose in the northern Negros city, noting that they stayed in a different barangay since 2022 but moved to Barangay Tinampa-an after they were petitioned to leave.
“We conducted initial validation and record checking, and now doing further investigation,” he added.
In Barangay Tinampa-an, the group who claimed to be Muslims had been constructing several structures to establish a community on a foreclosed property owned by a private bank.
De Chavez said the bank’s security officer met with city government officials on Thursday following the developments.
Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. said in a radio interview that the group was ordered to stop construction last month for lack of a building permit and was also issued a demolition order earlier this week.
He said the PNP and the Philippine Army are verifying the reported recruitment activity, adding that Cadiz City remains peaceful with no cause for alarm.
The alleged MNLF members were seen wearing military camouflage uniforms and recruiting members to be paid a monthly salary, according to local media reports.
In a separate interview, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said the reported presence of the MNLF members could be alarming but the local government unit is fully aware of the situation.
“The 79th Infantry Battalion (of the Philippine Army) and PNP are also on top of the situation,” he added. (PNA)
