CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao – A total of 15 members of the New People’s Army (NPA) surrendered to authorities in Senator Ninoy Aquino, Sultan Kudarat on Friday.
Capt. Arvin John Encinas, spokesperson of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said the rebels yielded to the Army’s 33rd Infantry Battalion (IB), 1st Mechanized IB; Marine Battalion Landing Team-2, and local police force in Sitio Kisaday, Barangay Kuden, Senator Ninoy Aquino at about 3 p.m.
The surrenderers consisted of members of the Yunit Militia, Kilusang Rebolusyunaryong Barangay, and My Phone Platoon, all belonging to the NPA’s Guerilla Front 73 operating in the peripheries of Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, and South Cotabato provinces.
The rebel returnees brought with them one M1 Garand, two Uzi machine pistols, one .38 caliber pistol, and two improvised explosive devices.
“The surrenderers are currently undergoing debriefing at the battalion headquarters of 33IB at Barangay Tual in President Quirino,” Encinas said Saturday.
He said the rebels decided to return to the fold of the law because of the hardship they have experienced in hiding at the mountainous area of Sultan Kudarat while evading government troops.
“They also came to realize the false promises of their communist leaders,” Encinas added.
Brig. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, the Army’s 6th Infantry Division commander, welcomed the return of the new batch of rebels to mainstream society, saying they are eligible for the benefits package under the government’s Enhance Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) for surrendering insurgents.
Under the E-CLIP, the surrenderers will receive an immediate assistance amounting to PHP15,000, firearm remuneration based on the type of surrendered firearms, and a PHP50,000 livelihood assistance.
“We expect more NPAs to surrender due to the ongoing Army and police pursuit operations against them in the mountains of South Central Mindanao,” Sobejana said. (Noel Punzalan/PNA)
