Insurgency: Corruption Of The Mind

The Philippines is inherently and systemically a corrupt state. Everyone knows it. Right now the nation is going through a reckoning regarding the corruption in the DPWH due to the massive flooding which is a result of bad contracts and sub-par construction. Amazingly the NTF-ELCAC is claiming that the CPP-NPA is using this perennial issue as a recruiting tool. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1257803

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) on Tuesday warned of the communist rebels' "tactic" of exploiting public outrage over government corruption to recruit new members.

"The most dangerous form of corruption is not only the plunder of public coffers but the corruption of the Filipino mind," NTF-ELCAC executive director, Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., said in a statement.

Torres said it has been established that communist rebels take advantage of public indignation over government corruption to recruit new members, particularly from the youth and the vulnerable sectors.

"Former rebels, especially the youth, have long attested that corruption in the bureaucracy was among the systemic reasons they were agitated into taking up arms," he said.

"They have also revealed how the Communist Party of the Philippines–New People’s Army–National Democratic Front (CPP–NPA–NDF) exploits this reality by preying on the youth, students, and vulnerable sectors, including even public servants, by twisting legitimate grievances into recruitment tactics for violent extremism."

NTF-ELCAC issued the statement as corruption issues involving government flood control projects continue to make the headlines.

Torres said there is a need to ensure that schools and communities remain safe spaces for legitimate debate and constructive civic engagement.

"We have to be alarmed when, instead of fostering genuine love for our country, they become pipelines for terror grooming by the CPP-NPA-NDF," he said.

The task force urged parents, educators, civil servants, and communities to "remain vigilant and guard not only our resources but the minds of our youth."

It also called on lawmakers to work on purging the government of corrupt bureaucrats, "while also enacting measures that ensure terrorist recruiters are held accountable under the law."

The NTF-ELCAC even admits that former rebels claim "corruption in the bureaucracy was among the systemic reasons they were agitated into taking up arms." So, this is nothing new. Corruption is why services have been withheld from far-flung regions and which the NTF-ELCAC was inaugurated to resolve. It's why good governance has become a counter-insurgency program with the building of roads, power lines, and the availability of running water. 

Even as the NTF-ELCAC condemns the CPP-NPA for using corruption as a recruitment tool they also condemn corruption in general. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1257891

The government task force on communist insurgency on Wednesday called for a united action against "corruption of the mind," which it described as the "most insidious form of corruption."

"Corruption manifests in many ways: the theft of public resources is a grave betrayal, but so too is the corruption of values that normalizes violence as a tool for change and dismisses dialogue as weakness," Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., executive director of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), said in a statement.

"Both erode the foundations of our nation."

Torres issued the statement as the country celebrates September as National Peace Consciousness Month.

"This Peace Month, the NTF-ELCAC calls for united action," Torres said.

He said schools, universities, and community spaces must remain sanctuaries of debate and civic engagement, and not staging grounds for violent extremism.

He cited recent incidents in Mindoro where claims of "militarization" were used to exploit student advocates, and the disruption of a student council assembly at the University of the Philippines by groups with agendas unrelated to student welfare.

These, Torres said, exemplify "'corruption of the mind' in action."

"[Corruption of the mind] hijacks the passion for justice and redirects it towards destruction," he added.

Torres said NTF-ELCAC's efforts to hold terrorist recruiters accountable must not be misconstrued as an attack on activism.

"We support constructive activism and critical thinking. These are pillars of our democracy. What we oppose is the deliberate manipulation of our youth and communities to embrace violence," he said.

This position, Torres added, aligns with international commitments, including the United Nations protocols against the recruitment of children by armed groups.

They may not think they are attacking activism but that is exactly what happens when they end up red-tagging activist groups and people. 

So far this year over 1.3k Reds and their supporters have been neutralized. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1257873

Over 1,300 New People's Army (NPA) rebels and their supporters were "neutralized" from Jan. 1 to Aug. 28 this year, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

"Neutralized," in military parlance, refers to the surrender, capture, or death of enemy forces due to government pressure.

In a media briefing late Tuesday, AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said of the total 1,335 "neutralized" NPA rebels and supporters, 1,163 surrendered to the government, 77 were arrested, and 95 were killed.

Padilla said 760 firearms and 360 anti-personnel mines were seized or surrendered by the rebels during the same period.

A total of 107 NPA encampments were also captured during the same period, she added.

Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. earlier said the Marcos administration is committed to improving the lives of former rebels who have willingly chosen the path to peace.

Under the peace agenda of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., former communist insurgents can avail of the national government’s socio-economic projects as well as its amnesty program to address their legal concerns, enabling them to complete their transformative journey and successfully return to mainstream society.

In 2023, Marcos issued Proclamation No. 404 granting amnesty to the former members of the NPA, as well as of the Communist Party of the Philippines and the National Democratic Front, who have committed crimes punishable under the Revised Penal Code and Special Penal laws in furtherance of their political beliefs, among other offenses.

But how many of these people were actual NPA fighters and how many are left? Those are the numbers we need to know. At last count in January 2024 approximately 1,500 remained.

Two NPA members were killed in a series of clashes in Masbate.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1257781

Two members of the New People's Army (NPA) were killed in a series of encounters with government forces in two barangays in Mobo, Masbate over the weekend.

Maj. Frank Roldan, chief of the 9th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office, identified the NPA rebels as alias "Lito" and "Roco".

Recovered from the rebels were several firearms, equipment, subversive documents and personal belongings.

"Our government troops are actively conducting focused military operations to ensure the safety of our citizens and communities, particularly in the remote areas of Bicol. Following a report from a concerned individual about a group of armed men in their vicinity, we initiated combat operations that led to a series of encounters," Roldan said.

During the operations, one soldier died and two were injured, Roldan added.

"The wounded soldiers are now in stable condition and receiving care in the hospital," he said.

On Negros island two men were executed by the NPA for being informants. One was a farmer and the other was a former barangay councilor. 

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2105059/man-killed-after-bringing-son-to-school-in-negros-occidental-town

The New People’s Army (NPA) claimed responsibility for another killing on Thursday—this time of a farmer who had just brought his son to school in Toboso town, Negros Occidental.

Johnny Boy “Jemboy” dela Fuente, 35, was gunned down shortly after dropping his son at school in Sitio Vergara, Barangay Bug-ang, Toboso, at 6:55 a.m. on Thursday.

He was on his way home on a motorcycle when at least two armed men blocked his path and shot him about 900 meters from the elementary school in Sitio Magto-od, according to police reports.

The farmer died instantly from multiple gunshot wounds.

Policemen recovered one 5.56 mm shell and five .45 shells at the scene.

Police Brig. Gen. Arnold Thomas Ibay, police regional director for the Negros Island region, condemned the killing and assured the public that resources would be deployed to bring justice to the victim and his family.

The Roselyn Jean Pelle Command-New People’s Army (RJPC-NPA) of the Northern Negros Guerilla Front said it executed a long-standing Revolutionary People’s Court death sentence, alleging dela Fuente was an intelligence asset of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

Dela Fuente had allegedly led soldiers from the 62nd Infantry Brigade to the home of an NPA member, which they raided. He also reportedly claimed that members of a local cooperative were involved with the rebel movement, said Ka Celle Estrella, spokesperson for the RJPC-NPA, in a press statement.

Meanwhile, the Police Regional Office–Negros Island Region (PRO-NIR) on Thursday strongly condemned the “senseless” killing of a former village official who was shot dead by the NPA outside his home in Hacienda Cabayao, Barangay San Pablo, Manapla, Negros Occidental, on Wednesday, Sept. 3.

On Wednesday evening, the RJPC-NPA issued a statement claiming responsibility for the killing.

The victim was identified as Pablo Brillantes, 54, a former barangay kagawad.

Neighbors described Brillantes as a “peace-loving individual with no derogatory record” and a respected public servant, police said.

According to the police, witnesses provided sworn statements identifying the suspects as members of the Communist Party of the Philippines–New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

Authorities believe Brillantes was targeted because the suspects mistook him for an informant for the Philippine Army.

PRO-NIR assured Brillantes’ family and the public that “justice will be relentlessly pursued.”

The Philippine National Police (PNP) called the killing a “cowardly act of violence” and urged residents to help authorities “put an end to the atrocities committed by the CPP-NPA.”

A case is expected to be formally filed on Monday, pending the release of post-mortem and ballistic examination results from the Crime Laboratory.

Clearly the NPA remains a threat and the AFP ought to stop saying things like they are leaderless, irrelevant, and have been strategically defeated. The exact opposite is true.