The PNP-AFP have done a bad thing. One of the baddest things they could have done. If you recall back in March a warrant was served on several suspected communists. Nine people ended up dead. Turns out one of the warrant was total rubbish.
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| https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/regions/809196/batangas-court-voids-bloody-sunday-search-warrant/story/ |
A Tanauan City court has voided a search warrant issued against an activist whose home was among those raided by policemen during the "Bloody Sunday" operations in March that left nine people dead.
In an eight-page decision, the court also declared as quashed the information against Erlindo Baez, a Bayan coordinator in Batangas, and the cases against him as dismissed.
“Under the Constitution, any evidence obtained in violation of a person’s right against unreasonable searches and seizure shall be inadmissible for any purpose or proceeding,” the court's decision read.
The court also ordered the Tanauan City Police to release Baez from custody.
According to the decision, requisites for the issuance of a search warrant include specific description of the place that must be searched, among others.
The court said the search warrant issued by Presiding Judge Jason Zapanta of Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 74 only commanded officers to make an immediate search at “Brgy. San Vincente, Sto. Tomas City, Batangas.”
It further said that no pictures or documents were attached that would aid the officers in their search.
“It is therefore clear that the subject search warrants failed to specifically and sufficiently describe the place to be searched,” the court said.
If there was anything in that house incriminating Baez it is now worthless. But remember when then PNP Chief Sinas insisted that all the warrants were completely valid?
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/113287 |
“It's a legitimate operation because they are covered by search warrants. Kung alam niyo kung gaano kahirap kumuha ng search warrants then naintindihan niyo you have to justify the charge, witnesses (If you know how difficult it is to get search warrants, then you understand that). Those are legitimate operations covered properly by the documents issued by the court,” Sinas told reporters when sought for comment on Monday.
Search warrants are difficult to get? Apparently not in this instance nor in a previous instance in Bacolod.
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| https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2021/03/09/2083107/search-warrant-qc-led-arrest-bayan-activists-bacolod-quashed |
A Bacolod City court has quashed the search warrant issued by Quezon City Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert that led to the arrest of several activists in Bacolod in 2019.
In a statement, NUPL Panay Chapter said the Bacolod City Regional Trial Court Branch 42 granted the Motions to Quash Search Warrant and Suppress Evidence filed by Karina Mae De La Cerna, Cherryl Catalogo and John Milton Lozande.
It added that similar motions were granted in the cases against Proseso Quiatchon, Albert De La Cerna and Noli Rosales.
NUPL Panay said the accused were arrested following the police’s implementation of search warrants issued by Villavert in the office of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) in Bacolod City. They were charged with violation of Comprehensive Firearm and Ammunition Regulation Act — one of the common cases filed against activists that have kept them in jail.
In resolving their motion, Acting Presiding Judge Ana Celeste Bernad ordered the quashal of the search warrant over “non-conformity with established constitutional rules and the evidence.”
This is the second reported nullification of search warrant issued by Villavert. The Mandaluyong court in February declared as void the search warrant that was implemented and led to the arrest of Manila Today editor Lady Ann Salem and trade unionist Rodrigo Esparago.
In the case against the Bacolod activists, the court said the search warrant failed to “describe the place with particularity,” as it noted that it only identified one place but upon their ocular inspection, there are three structures in the compound.
The court stressed that the validity of search warrant does not only rest on probable cause as determined by judge upon application. “[I]t is essential too, that it particularly describe the place to be searched, the manifest intention being that the search be confined strictly to the place so described,” it said.
These activists were jailed for two years all because of a warrant that should never have been issued in the first place. Along with declaring the CPP-NPA soon to be irrelevant the issuing of faulty warrants is a huge problem for the PNP. It leads to cases being tossed and only serves to tarnish their reputation and the reputation of the courts who issue them. Sadly this problem is not going away anytime soon.
Activism may be a front for the communists but it is not in and of itself illegal. Neutralizing activists certainly has not stopped the 53 year insurgency. Likewise banning books won't stop the insurgency either.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1512755/book-industry-group-joins-protest-vs-library-purge |
According to the Book Development Association of the Philippines (BDAP), the removal of books with sensitive or challenging content is a violation of freedom in publishing and freedom of thought, and impedes critical thinking and empathy.
“When we ban certain books, we teach our young to retreat to silence when they need to speak. We push them to close their ears from fear when they need to listen, and we let them grow blind to what they should see,” it said in a recent statement.
It commended UP Visayas Chancellor Clement Camposano for refusing to follow the lead of Kalinga State University, Isabela State University, and Aklan State University in purging their libraries of books and documents deemed subversive.
“If we are afraid of books, then we have a problem,” he said.
That could not have been said better. If books are to be feared then there is a problem. But why is the PNP-AFP concentrating on so-called subversive material in college libraries now? According to Philippine Army Commander Lt. Gen. Andres Centino the NTF-ELCAC has allowed troops to focus more on combat ops.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1158720 |
Philippine Army (PA) commander Lt. Gen. Andres Centino said the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) has allowed troops to focus more on combat missions and security operations.
"The NTF-ELCAC, which relies on the comprehensive whole-of-nation approach in solving the insurgency problem, allowed our troops to focus on combat missions and security operations," Centino said in a statement posted at the PA's Facebook page on Thursday.
Communist insurgents suffered a massive blow with the death of top New People's Army (NPA) commander Jorge "Ka Oris" Madlos. He died in an encounter in the hinterlands of Impasug-ong, Bukidnon last October 30.
What is being said here is that because of the NTF-ELCAC enough active NPA fighters have surrendered that the AFP does not have to worry about fighting them or coercing them to come out of hiding. Now the government's bribery program is lucrative enough that one would have to be a fool to not surrender and avail of all the offered benefits. That means the government can focus on the big fish like Ka Oris. But they are also pressuring college libraries to remove subversive material even if it can be proved no one have ever checked out those books. Why? In one instance there was no evidence that the books had ever been checked out.
Lt. Gen. Andres Centino is the newly appointed AFP Chief and in his inauguration speech he told his troops that the final blow versus the Reds must be dealt soon in order to meet Duterte's deadline of defeating the insurgency before his term expires.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1514194/centino-tells-troops-deal-final-blow-vs-reds-to-meet-duterte-deadline |
“Our commander-in-chief has entrusted to us a crucial responsibility—to end the local armed conflict before the end of his presidential term on 30 June 2022,” he said in his assumption speech on Friday (Nov. 12).
“We must unleash our full force for the final blow that will ultimately destroy and defeat the enemies of the state,” he said.
The Philippines has one of the world’s longest-running insurgency, with the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army waging a guerrilla war for more than 50 years.
Centino said the military welcomes insurgents who want to return to the government fold, but warned rebels who would keep fighting that “the full wrath of the AFP will hit you hard to the brink of your extinction in the face of our society.”
Every President since Marcos has tasked the AFP with defeating the insurgency by the end of their term. It's a total PR move that, if actually done, would give all credit to the current President. This kind of deadline does not take into account realties on the ground and causes false hopes. It is one reason among many that the AFP cannot properly defeat the insurgency. They are too busy trying to rush things to appease the current President, whoever he may be.
In fact, Centino is so bold as to proclaim that the AFP is close to defeating every security threat.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1159614 |
In his assumption speech, Centino said the winning streak of the AFP can be attributed to the "firm conviction and full support of our Commander-in-Chief," a reference to President Rodrigo R. Duterte.
"The AFP also enjoys a plus 74 or excellent net satisfaction rating (among) Filipinos based on the most recent social weather station survey. These assurances fuel the dauntless spirit of the men and women of the organization in conquering the challenges of the day. From internal security to external defense, and the ramifications of the unseen enemy during this Covid-19 pandemic," he added.
Centino also said the AFP is more than motivated in carrying out its core purpose of protecting the people and securing the state.
"With the issuance of Executive Order 70 and the creation of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) in the country, we will continue to pursue a whole-of-government and whole-of-nation approach against all threats. Our relentless operations against the terrorists will ensure a physically and psychologically secured environment conducive for inclusive progress," he added.
Under his leadership as the 57th AFP chief, Centino said that there will be four priority thrusts that will serve as a "baseline and guiding mechanisms" in accomplishing missions in the organization.
These are operational efficiency, optimal use of resources, advancing professionalism and meritocracy in the AFP, and capability development.
Despite the operations of the NTF-ELCAC since 2018 the CPP-NPA has continued to amass billions of pesos. In Northeast Mindanao alone they have collected 1 billion pesos since 2016.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1158365 |
The Army's 4th Infantry Division (4ID) on Sunday revealed that the Northeastern Mindanao Regional Committee (NEMRC) of the New People’s Army (NPA) has collected PHP1 billion in the last half decade – the biggest amount of communist extortion money in the Philippines.Col. Edmund delos Santos, 4ID's civil-military operations officer, in a press conference Sunday, said based on their monitoring since 2016, the NEMRC has collected an average of PHP200 million yearly totaling to over PHP1 billion in the last five years."The collection from Caraga region comprised 60 percent of the overall extortion nationwide, some of the collections are also used to fund (NPA regional committees in) other regions," he said.Maj. Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., 4ID commander, said the NEMRC is where Myrna Sularte, alias Maria Malaya, operates collecting "revolutionary taxes" from private businesses such as mining and construction companies.Sularte, the NEMRC secretary, is the wife of NPA spokesperson and national operations command (NOC) officer Jorge "Ka Oris" Madlos, who was killed during an encounter with the Army’s 403rd Brigade forces in Impasugong, Bukidnon on October 30.
This 1 billion pesos is only 60% of the total nationwide which means the total is about 1.6 billion pesos. That is whole a lot which is why the AFP is now going after Ka Oris's wife but that does not include the P5.8 billion collected from foreign donations.
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| https://www.philstar.com/nation/2021/08/03/2117131/cpp-npa-collected-p58-billion-foreign-donations |
The Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) was allegedly able to collect P5.8 billion in foreign donations and revolutionary taxes from 2016 to 2018, officials said yesterday.
The money was allegedly used by the communists to finance their terrorist activities and support the lifestyles of their leaders.
The NICA said the communist group exploited the issues on human rights and indigenous peoples (IPs) to convince their donors to donate.
Monteagudo said that another source of the communists’ funding is the “revolutionary tax,” which NPA guerrillas impose and extort from businesses in rural and remote areas.
“Aside from terrorism, the funds were also used to support the lifestyle of their leaders allegedly like Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate, who was supposedly using the money to finance his son’s education in Poland, as mentioned by President Duterte during his last State of the Nation Address,” Monteagudo said.
NICA director Monteagudo apparently has no idea if what he is saying is true. That is why he says Zarate allegedly and supposedly has used this money to finance his sons education in Poland. Why would a Filipino seek an education in Poland? This kind of non-committal statement coming from the director of the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency is outrageous. Either Zarate is or he is not utilizing CPP-NPA funds. It should be a straight forward process to determine the truth but instead the head of NICA is relying on unproven allegations. That is how the PNP ends up with warrants that ultimately end up being voided. It's one big cycle of faulty intel and spurious allegations and there seems to be no end to it.
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