Last week I wrote that it seems as if the AFP would rather the rebels and terrorists surrender and avail of E-CLIP benefits instead of engaging them in firefights. But for those who refuse to surrender they had better watch out.
"The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in battle."
These were the first words of Major General Arnulfo Marcelo B Burgos Jr, Commander of the Philippine Army’s 2nd Infantry Division, who presided over the send-off ceremony for 178 privates and 53 snipers here on Tuesday.
According to the military, the new soldiers completed the 45-day Jungle Warfare and Mountain Operation Course which prepared them for the rigors of military operations, particularly in the treacherous terrains of Sierra Madre mountain range which is a traditional mobility corridor of the NPA terrorists.
In his speech, Maj Gen Burgos reminded the new soldiers "to be mindful of your actions because beyond our ability to fight and win wars, we have the responsibility to the Philippine Army as an organization in promoting a positive image of the Filipino soldiers so that we may be able to attain our transformation objective of becoming a world-class Army that is loved and respected by the very people whom we have sworn to serve."
He added that “having been trained in accordance to the finest traditions of Filipino soldiery and the high standards of being a Jungle Fighter, we are one with our nation in hoping that your deployment will help our frontline units in fast-tracking the already imminent and irreversible defeat of the NPA terrorists in the immediate south of our government’s seat of power.”
In a statement, 2ID said that the 53 snipers have painstakingly completed “two months of very intense training” which can be classified as “beyond the ordinary.”
Maj Gen Burgos emphasized to the snipers that they have been “entrusted with a particular skill set, a skill set not imparted to ordinary soldiers” while expressing confidence that “you will understand that you are expected to act in a better and more matured manner in the frontlines.”
He pointed out that "the units that you will be deploying with will rely on your rare ability, patience and sharpness with the hope that you will be able to turn the tides in the battlefield in favor of your fellow soldiers, in a manner that you were envisioned to do."
"The NPA terrorists’ current state of weakness is a testament that we have already pushed them on the verge of irreversible defeat and that your addition to our forces in the field will help our units to deliver the finishing touches to the more than 5-decade communist terrorist insurgency that has been hampering the growth and potentials of our great country," ended Maj Gen Burgos.
The new soldiers and snipers will beef up 2ID’s frontline units and will see action across CALABARZON Region, MIMARO Provinces, Davao, Zamboanga, Basilan and Metro Manila.
The snipers have been "entrusted with a particular skill set, a skill set not imparted to ordinary soldiers." That sounds like tough talk. Hopefully it's not just a recycled quote from Taken.
It would be a shame for those newly acquired skills to go to waste. Hopefully they do see action. There has been a lot of action this week in the Philippines war against the communists and Islamacists.
The Philippine Army on Saturday said 15 members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and two soldiers died during the July 29 clash with troops in Datu Salibo, Maguindanao.
An earlier report said 10 BIFF members were killed and two soldiers died in the gunfight.
The clash started at 5:20 a.m. and lasted until 11:30 a.m.
Soldiers from the Army's 57th Infantry Battalion were patrolling the area when they encountered a number of BIFF and Dawlah Islamiya terror group members in Barangay Penditen.
Two AFP soldiers
dead and 15 BIFF fighters dead after a six hour firefight. A few days before that 7 BIFF were wounded and 2 AFP soldiers died in a firefight in the same area.
Two soldiers under the Army’s 57th Infantry Battalion were killed while 13 others were wounded during a firefight with the Daesh-inspired Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Maguindanao on Wednesday, the Army here said.
Seven BIFF combatants were also injured, said Lt. Colonel Anhouvic Atilano, the Army’s 6th Infantry Division spokesperson.
In a radio interview, Atilano said the skirmishes erupted past 6 a.m. in Barangay Penditen, Datu Salibo, Maguindanao when the BIFF attacked elements of the 57IB.
He declined to identify the slain infantrymen until their immediate families are officially informed.
“The soldiers were patrolling the village when about 20 gunmen set off a roadside bomb and fired at the soldiers,” Atilano said.
Local officials said the wounded BIFF fighters were carried away by their comrades while retreating.
Abu Sayyaf has also lost members to AFP bullets.
Six Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) bandits and three soldiers were killed while three others were wounded in a firefight in the Sulu town of Patikul, officials said Saturday.
Maj. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Joint Task Force (JTF) Sulu commander, said the armed encounter in Barangay Taung, Patikul late Friday morning, broke out when an undetermined number of ASG bandits fired on government troops who were on a security operation.
The firefight resulted in the death of six ASG bandits and three soldiers, and the wounding of three other soldiers.
While the AFP continues to fight and kill rebels and terrorists they really do want them to surrender.
"The AFP will be instrumental in creating conditions where CTG members will seek to return to the folds of the law (through, intelligence operations, psychological operations and civil affairs aside from armed operations). And the government’s front-line agencies will take over and assist through the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP)," said military spokesperson, Marine Maj. Gen. Edgard Arevalo, in a press statement.
Psychological operations against the rebels or against the public?
As part of its psychological operations in its war on terror, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was ordered to downplay the presence of global terror group ISIS in the Philippines, according to its chief.
AFP Chief General Eduardo Año admitted this is his affidavit quoted by Solicitor General Jose Calida in a memorandum submitted to the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday, June 19.
"That despite the actual threat of ISIS in the Philippines, there had been a directive to all AFP spokesperson and personnel to downplay any news or information pertaining to this collective group. This is so as not to give them recognition and fan the flames of rebellion," Año said in his affidavit quoted by Calida.
"Despite the actual threat of ISIS" the AFP lied to the public and said ISIS did not have a foothold in the country. Did they at least take the threat seriously behind the scenes or were they fooled by their own propaganda? Just another thing to question the AFP about if a Senate investigation into the Marawi siege were to ever take place.
But what kind of PSYOPS is the AFP engaging in to get rebels to surrender? How can the people trust them when they say rebels are surrendering? Plenty continue to surrender or so we are told.
Eleven former members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Eastern Visayas have surrendered to policemen driven by their desire to start a new life.
Among them is "Walik," 26, who was recruited and convinced by NPA to join their armed-cause in Samar province when he was a minor 10 years ago.
It was a nightmare for his mother knowing that one of her 10 children joined the communist terrorist group.
“His father was very worried when we learned that one of our sons joined the NPA. He said our son has no future in there. We searched for him to convince him to return home,” said Walik’s mother, who refused to be named.
She said her son’s decision to yield to authorities is an answer to her prayers.
The young former rebel said the promise of fighting for a better life persuaded him to join the group.
“When I joined, I just suffered homesickness and fear. My life in the communist group was very hard prompting me to escape from our camp, carrying nothing,” Walik told reporters.
He said he wanted to continue his studies just like his other siblings who are now in college and high school.
“I want (to) take the Alternative Learning System and earn a college degree to fulfill my father’s wish for me to become a soldier,” Walik said.
At least 32 supporters of the Communist Party of the Philippines - New People’s Army - National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) vowed loyalty to the government in a ceremony held in Barangay Malinao, Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija on Friday.
Lt. Col. Reandrew P. Rubio, commanding officer of the Army’s 91st Infantry (Sinagtala) Battalion (IB), said those who renounced support for the communist terrorist group were 12 members of the Alyansang Magbubukid na Nagkakaisa (Almana), categorized as an underground mass organization (UGMO), and 20 Exploited Local Populace (supporters/contacts/couriers) in Barangay Malinao, coerced to support the communist group operating in Nueva Ecija.
Rubio said the mass surrender was facilitated by the 91st IB of the 7th Infantry (Kaugnay) Division, Gabaldon Municipal Police Station, the 1st Provincial Mobile Force Company of the Nueva Ecija Police, the 22nd Special Action Company, and the 2nd Battalion Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police.
The massive withdrawal of support signals the dismantling of the communist terrorist organization of the Komiteng Larangang Guerilla (KLG) Sierra Madre of the NPA, he said, adding the surrenderers finally made the right decision to live without fear.
“It is better to live our lives together with our families or loved ones happily and it is better to live our lives in peace,” Rubio said.
Gabaldon Mayor Jobby P. Emata encouraged his constituents to support the government programs to reach the desired lasting peace and sustain progress in their community.
Eight members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) have yielded to the government Monday, an Army official said, adding the military’s peace campaign has continued to attract more Moro rebels into mainstream society.
“The rebels turned in assorted firearms as they renounced their membership with the group," Mayor Resty Sindatok of Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Maguindanao told reporters.
Sindatok facilitated the surrender of BIFF members, led by Ibrahim Guno, after weeks of negotiation.
“They just grew tired of fighting a futile cause,” Sindatok said.
During the surrender ceremonies, the former BIFF members also pledged allegiance to the government and the Philippine flag.
Guno told reporters he and his group decided to return to the fold of law after realizing that their involvement with the BIFF has not given them good since.
Five members of the Daesh-inspired Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) yielded to military authorities in Lebak, Sultan Kudarat on Sunday.
Major Gen. Diosdado Carreon, Army’s 6th Infantry Division (ID) chief, identified the surrenderers as Haris Marohom, Amer Sanday, Mindo Abdullah, Marvin Guima, and Casim Sanday--all members of the BIFF–Kiram Abdullah faction.
The five submitted themselves before military and police officials at the 603Bde headquarters in Barangay Tibpuan, Lebak, Sultan Kudarat.
“All five surrenderers are followers of Kiram Abdullah who earlier surrendered to the government last July 17, 2020, in Ampatuan, Maguindanao together with four other followers,” Carreon said in a report Monday.
And what do these rebels and terrorists do after they surrender? They become farmers of course!
From persuading villagers to fight against the government to leading farmers to produce high-value crops, a former rebel shared his transformation story on Wednesday.
Marcelino Solatorio, 47, the leader of a 68-member farmer’s group in this town's Daja Daku village said life has become more meaningful after he abandoned the ideology of the New People’s Army (NPA) two years ago.
“We are more productive now that we have been thinking of ways on how to cultivate high-value crops instead of waiting for the fulfillment of the NPA’s empty promises,” Solatorio told the Philippine News Agency (PNA).
Solatorio was an active member of the NPA’s Militia ng Bayan (MB) from 2002 to 2018, leading the barangay (village) organizing party in remote communities of San Isidro town.
He used to gather villagers to join anti-government gatherings in their community and help secure NPA forces.
Poverty encouraged him to support the communist terrorist group who promised him of land ownership and a better life. “What really happened was the opposite. They never provided any financial support to us. Instead, they were the ones asking for food from us,” he recalled.
The former rebel is one of the more than 1,000 NPA fighters and MB members in San Isidro and Calubian towns who surrendered to the Philippine Army’s 802nd Infantry Brigade on April 13, 2019.
MB refers to individuals who have been indoctrinated and may or may not be directly involved in violent armed struggle, but when organized, can provide mass support to the revolutionary movement of the communist terrorist group.
Solatorio is one of the 262 former rebels who received the multi-million financial aid when President Rodrigo Duterte visited the town on January 24, 2020.
How true are any of the above stories? This guy Solatorio was not even an armed rebel. He was merely a recruiter! To call him a rebel is a bit deceptive. How can the public trust anything the AFP says when the AFP admits they lie to the public as part of their PSYOPS?
In the midst of all the chaos the rebuilding of Marawi continues and apparently it is conveniently on track to be finished by the end of Duterte's term.
The government assured that the rehabilitation of the war-torn Marawi City is on track and will be completed within the term of President Rodrigo Duterte, Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) chairman, Secretary Eduardo del Rosario, said Friday.
“As committed, the rehabilitation of government infrastructures in Marawi City will be completed within the term of our President. That is his order and that will be done,” del Rosario said in a statement.
He was reacting to Basilan Rep. Mujiv Hataman's remarks over the lack of mention of the Marawi rehabilitation during Duterte's State-of-the-Nation Address (SONA) last Monday.
Del Rosario, also the country's housing czar, said various infrastructure projects within Marawi's most affected areas (MAA) have already started and still on progress.
The reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts could be finished on the targeted deadlines, he added.
“In fact, we are on track. We are on target to finish most, if not all, public infrastructures by December 2021 as embodied in our Master Development Plan,” he said, reiterating that the "full-scale construction works have already started July on various major projects" amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Del Rosario said various implementing agencies under the TFBM are now carrying out measures to hasten projects and meet the respective timelines assigned to them.
He said the government is now working to put up public structures inside Marawi's MAA which include the Grand Padian Central Market, Marawi City Museum, and Peace Memorial.
"The TFBM is set to construct Marawi City Fire Station and a four-story 20-classroom Integrated School--all within MAA," he said.
The government will also put up health centers and madrasah (Islamic schools) each for the 24 barangays that are less affected areas during the Marawi siege, he added, noting that some economic activities outside MAA have been improved.
“I just visited MAA last July 15 and 16 and I saw for myself the ongoing full-scale construction works. So, I can assure the good congressman that the rehabilitation is on track,” Del Rosario said in response to Hataman's concern about Marawi rehabilitation.
Not everyone agrees with Del Roasario's assessment. An open letter signed by five groups representing displaced Merano's reads as follows:
Three years on, however, those promises seem to be empty rhetoric. Most of us Meranao remain displaced – a total of 25,367 families or 126,835 individuals – with 2,954 families in transitory shelters.
The clearing of unexploded bombs and debris in Ground Zero is still to be completed. The implementation of rehabilitation projects is bogged by a lot of delays and red tape. Currently, there are 56 government agencies that are part of the TFBM, and navigating all approvals, signatures, and budget releases are tedious. As for the funds, some have been returned to the treasury, some releases were declared unauthorized by the Commission on Audit, while some funds, especially those donated by other countries, remain unaccounted for.
Meanwhile, TFBM chairman and Housing Secretary Eduardo Del Rosario claims in an interview this early June that the rehabilitation of Marawi City would be completed within the target deadline of December 2021. “I was assured that we are on the right track despite itong 3 months na hindi tayo nakapagtrabaho masyado,” Del Rosario said.
We wonder how the good Secretary can make those claims when reality on the ground belies it?
https://rappler.com/voices/ispeak/opinion-president-please-allow-meranao-to-go-back-home-amid-threat-coronavirus
It will be a good thing if the complete rehabilitation and rebuilding of Marawi is finished by July 2022 on Duterte's orders and that if the construction is not a shoddy rush job just to meet the deadline.
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