ILOILO- The New Peoples Army (NPA) have frustrated the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)’s target to destroy the armed movement in Panay by March 2020, NPA spokesperson Julio Montana said on Wednesday.

The NPA is set to celebrate their 51st founding anniversary on March 29. It was founded under the leadership of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) at Tarlac province, northern Luzon, on 1969.

In a statement, Julio Montana of Coronacion ìWaling-walingî Chiva Command, the regional organization of NPA-Panay, said the group have ìachieved greater victories and lessonsî throughout the country in a year. The group said they have ìmounted more than 40 tactical offensivesî, wiping out an entire company of combined military, police and paramilitary government forces in Panay alone. They also owned three casualties from their side.

The NPA declared the military’s plan to eradicate the armed movement in Panay by March 2020 unsuccessful. This despite the military’s ‘coercion of local government units’ to declare the NPA as ‘persona non grata’, Montana said. The 3rd Infantry Division of the Philippine Army repeatedly announced that it will destroy the NPA in Panay by end of this month.

The NPA accused the military of coercing local government units and barangay officials to draw anti-insurgency task forces and created “mass surrender” of civilians as money-making schemes of psychological warfare and propaganda.

Montana also said that the CoViD-19 pandemic is being used by president Duterte as a pretext “to become a full-pledged dictator”. Duterte is taking advantage of the “hysteria that was caused by his own criminal negligence” to further suppress the people, pointed Montana.

The NPA spokesperson is expecting that the emergency powers granted by congress and senate to Duterte will be used ‘to crush dissent and opposition’.

Montana maintained that they are supporting the CPP pronouncement not to reciprocate Duterte’s unilateral ceasefire. He said that the government’s ceasefire is a malicious psychological warfare aimed to cover up the continued intensifying police and military operations and offensives. “Despite the ceasefire, government forces continue to arrest and murder legal and democratic individuals”. Montana noted.

The NPA announced they will be on ‘active defense mode’ and ready to thwart continuing police and military operations in Panay. They called on the people to unite and fight the health disaster created by the US-Duterte regime.
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