GENERAL SANTOS CITY (PIA) -- Joint Task Force Central and 6th Infantry (Kampilan) Division commander Maj. Gen. Juvymax Uy hailed the local government unit (LGU) of Tboli and the indigenous people (IP) leaders for being instrumental in the surrender of two communist terrorist group (CTG) members to government authorities.
The former rebels surrendered to the 11th Special Forces Company, 5th Special Forces Battalion of the 1st Mechanized Infantry Brigade, 6th Infantry Division in Tboli, South Cotabato on Friday (Feb. 4).
The surrenderers who are both residents of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato were identified as alias Dagul, a political guide of Platoon Central, Guerilla Front Musa (GF MUSA), Far South Mindanao Region (FSMR), and a certain Tata Tonow Tihal alias Tata, a Milisyang Bayan member.
An M79 grenade launcher with five-round 40mm high explosive ammunition was yielded to the military. Also alias Dagul led military troops to an “arms cache” containing one cal. 5.56 M16 rifle and another M79 grenade launcher in barangay Laconon, Tboli.
Both of them belong to the Tboli indigenous people group.
Assuring the LGUs and the IPs in Soccsksargen (Region XII) of his commitment to protect “the communities and families from the atrocities and exploitations of the CTGs,” Uy called on other CTG members to lay down their arms and return to the fold of the law.
He said the government will continue to hunt them down in order to ensure the safety of the people in the communities.
Meanwhile, Tboli Mayor Dibu Tuan said he is determined to protect his constituents from the influences of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).
He also vowed to fight CTG’s exploitation of the IPs as he described their ideology “the poison that destroys the culture and tradition of the IPs.”
The mayor then expressed confidence in the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) as effective mechanism to end insurgency and bring in the most needed development especially in communities most infested with communist rebels.
Brig. Gen. Pedro Balisi Jr., commander of the 1st Mechanized Infantry Brigade, also praised the members of the 11th Special Forces for the surrender while recognizing the distinct roles of the LGUs and the IPs in suppressing communist terrorism in vulnerable communities.
Balisi also asked them for their continued cooperation and support of Executive Order No. 70 that institutionalizes ELCAC and the subsequent implementation of convergence programs in the different priority barangays. He said the surrender of former rebels is a “big loss” to the CTGs.
As a commitment to improve ELCAC priority areas, 62 barangays across Soccsksargen are recipients of 206 projects under the Local Government Support Fund-Support to the Barangay Development Program (LGSF-SBDP) of the NTF-ELCAC.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government Region XII status report on the SBDP projects as of January 21, 2022, says that of the 206-- five were already completed, 39 ongoing, four under preparation, and 158 on procurement stage.
The projects, which were chosen by the community residents themselves, range from farm-to-market roads, electrifications, potable water systems, school buildings, health stations, livelihood, to assistance for indigent families or individuals, among other social services. (With reports from DPAO-6ID, PA)
