ILOILO City – Government troops in Western Visayas are bracing for possible major attacks by the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) ahead of its 52nd founding anniversary on Dec. 26.
Major Cenon Pancito III, spokesperson of the Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division, said they are ready to counter possible offensives by the New People’s Army (NPA), CPP’s armed wing, against government security forces and vital installations in the region.
In the past, Pancito said, rebels launched major attacks against the police and the military in dates surrounding its founding anniversary.
“Kapag anniversary nila (CPP) ay nagla-launch sila ng atrocities. Hindi natin papayagan ‘yan,” Pancito stressed.
Among the latest attacks staged by the group was that in Barangay Balicua, Tubungan, Iloilo, where a landmine hit a police patrol vehicle. No one was hurt in the incident.
According to Pancito, the 3ID, which operates in the islands of Panay and Negros, deployed personnel in the entire region to launch offensive operations against communist insurgents.
For his part, Police Brigadier General Rolando Miranda, Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) director, ordered all police units to increase vigilance.
“Never be complacent. All policemen should be in their posts or in their stations,” Miranda stressed.
Both the government and the CPP-NPA will not declare a ceasefire during the Christmas holidays.
The Philippine Army did not recommend the declaration of a ceasefire to President Rodrigo Duterte, saying “the communist terrorist group has shown insincerity and unfaithfulness to the ceasefire in the past.”
Previous ceasefire agreements usually break down before their planned expiration, with both sides accusing the other of violating the truce.
The CPP, in a statement, said it instructed its armed wing, the NPA, to “defend the masses and themselves against the attacks of the AFP.”
“In the face of the vicious attacks by Duterte’s military and police officers both in the cities and countryside, the CPP Central Committee is forced to dispense with the traditional holiday ceasefire this year,” the statement read./PN
