ZAMBOANGA CITY— Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has vowed support for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s (ARMM) reintegration program for Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) returnees.
Secretary Lorenzana said the program deserves the national government’s support as it has delivered positive results from its initial interventions.
Lorenzana, along with Alexander Macario, assistant secretary for peace and order of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), attended the ARMM’s Regional Peace and Order Council meeting on March 21, at the Western Mindanao Command headquarters in this city.
The reintegration program, dubbed Program Against Violence and Extremism (PAVE), is a brainchild of ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman’s office.
PAVE is designed to provide opportunities to members of the ASG who surrendered and returned to the fold of law for reintegration in society. It seeks to encourage ASG members to return to the fold of the law.
A total of 173 former Abu Sayyaf members from the provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi have recently surrendered to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), or to their local government units (LGUs).
Under the program, surrenderees must give up their firearms before they can be admitted, said John Louie Balagot, cabinet secretary of the ARMM Governor’s Office and current PAVE manager.
Balagot added a series of interventions were initiated involving the 89 returnees from Basilan since July 2017.
The interventions include psychosocial sessions, medical check-ups, introduction to farming systems, and expository tours outside the island provinces, which are designed to usher the complete reformation of the former combatants into decent and productive members of society.
The returnees will also be provided with farm implements as livelihood support and housing from the ARMM-Bangsamoro Regional Inclusive Development with Growth and Equity Program.
“After hearing Sec. Lorenzana’s support, we will be able to expand and enhance our program to deliver more services to the returnees,” Balagot added.
The 84 returnees from Sulu and Tawi-Taw will undergo interventions similar to those in Basilan, he said.
PAVE’s partners include the local government units of Basilan, AFP Joint Task Force, Basilan Young Leaders Program, Nagdilaab Foundation, Inc., and Eisenhower Fellows Association of the Philippines. (ARMM-PR/PNA)
