ILOILO City – Two weeks after the new commander of the Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division (3ID) vowed to hunt and hit rebels hard, government troops warded off a band of New People’s Army (NPA) from the remote barangay of Igtuble in Tubungan, Iloilo.
Soldiers of the Army’s 61st Infantry (Hunter) Battalion also recovered anti-personnel landmine, 18 meters electrical wire and detonator from the encounter site.
There were no casualties on the government side, according to Lieutenant Colonel Joel Benedict Batara, battalion commander.
The skirmish happened at around 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Army soldiers, who verifying reports from villagers about armed men in the area, encountered an estimated 10 rebels.
On Nov. 12, new 3ID commander Brigadier General Eric Vinoya warned the rebels: “If you don’t surrender, expect more combat encounters in the next few weeks. All military units in our area of responsibility will be utilized to hunt you and hit you very hard.”
Tuesday’s encounter lasted for some 10 minutes until the rebels retreated to the mountains.
Batara could not confirm if there were casualties or injuries on the part of the NPA.
But he said the rebels belonged to Sibat 1, Southern Front, Komiteng Rehiyon-Panay under Moncino Tacaisan alias Dana.
“Residents alerted us about armed men in their area,” said Batara. He thanked them.
“Tubangan, specifically Igtuble, is a strategic place for the NPA rebels to hide because of its mountainous terrain. But we will not allow these terrorists to destroy the breathtaking landscape of Tubunguan and its blooming tourism industry,” stressed Batara.
Those rebels were the ones sending extortion letters and harassing Century Peak Energy Corp. in nearby Barangay Igcabugao, Igbaras, he added.
“The rebels are hungry. They extort money from businessmen just to survive,” said Batara.
Early this month, Tubungan committed to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to create a Municipal Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (ELCAC) by the end of November.
Tubungan had been identified as “vulnerable” to the NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines.
“The task force will serve as a convergence platform for the delivery of basic services which will lead to good governance,” said DILG-Iloilo director Teodoro Sumagaysay.
Rebels thrive in villages where development and government services are seldom seen by residents, she explained.
Five other towns also committed to establish their respective municipal ELCACs – Alimodian, Calinog, Janiuay, Maasin, and Lambunao – in line with President Rodrigo Duterte’s Executive Order 70 institutionalizing the “whole-of-nation approach” in combatting insurgency. Its rationale is: Neither the Armed Forces nor any law enforcement squad alone can conquer insurgence. All agencies aboard should do its share in ending communist insurgency across the country. The support of all stakeholders must be enlisted.
The target is to end the insurgency by 2020, according to 3ID’s Vinoya.
He appealed for support from local chief executives and the public in general.
“We must be more aggressive, proactive and purposive in our efforts,” said Vinoya.
To the rebels, he further said, “You still have a chance to leave the armed movement and go back to the fold of law enjoying true freedom and various government basic services together with your loved ones.”/PN
