First by forcing civilians to surrender, pocketing reward money, then by claiming bounty after killing them.

Thus, National Democratic Front of the Philippines Chief Political Consultant Jose Maria Sison slammed the modus of Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) to double their profits from its surrender program.

“The military officers pocket for themselves the reward money for the fake surrenders and even the E-CLIP funds supposedly for the surrenderers,” he said.

“Next is far worse,” added Sison, “they pick out from the list of surrenders those whom they kill in order to collect further the bigger reward money for NPA casualties in fake encounters.”

Military officers bag ₱65,000 for each “surrenderee” presented. Meanwhile in May 2020, Duterte offered a ₱2-million bounty for every “top NPA commander” killed or arrested.

Sison’s comments came after two recent incidents of “surrenderees” murdered by the police and military. In a week’s time, two former Red fighters of the New People’s Army who were forced to surrender by the military, were murdered by police and military forces after proving uncooperative. The two refused to point fingers to “supposed” supporters of the revolutionary movement contrary to orders by the AFP.

On January 24, police elements of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group shot and killed Michael Bagasala outside his home in Barangay San Antonio, Barcelona, Sorsogon. Bagasala, coerced by the 31st IB, surrendered last 2018.

After the murder, the police immediately dished out the “nanlaban” storyline. But witnesses in the NPA-Sorsogon’s investigation refuted this, saying he was killed after being tortured for not confessing the whereabouts of his family and relatives.

Few days after, another “surrenderee” was shot and killed by the Philippine National Police (PNP)-Surigao City in Barangay San Roque, Surigao City. NPA-Surigao del Norte said that Noel Degamon Jr. has lived as a civilian since 2014.

Degamon Jr., was forced to surrender in October 2020, and was since then constantly threatened and harassed by military elements.