Insurgency: Dramatic Economic Turnaround

The AFP has once again released an update on the war against the insurgency. 1,108 "insurgents and their supporters were “neutralized" from Jan. 1 to Aug. 27." What does that mean exactly? Let's check it out. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1283131

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said 1,108 New People's Army (NPA) insurgents and their supporters were “neutralized" from Jan. 1 to Aug. 27.

Of the total, 995 individuals surrendered, 40 were arrested, and 73 were killed during military operations, AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said in a media interview Tuesday.

Neutralized, in military terms, refers to the surrender, capture, or killing of enemy troops.

During the same period, 698 firearms were either seized or surrendered, along with 276 anti-personnel mines.

Padilla said 39 NPA encampments were also captured during the same time.

"These figures tell us something very important – out of the 1,108 CTG (communist terrorist group) members and supporters encountered, 995 po ang (are) surrenderees. That tells us the path to peace and reintegration remains open," she added.

In 2025, the AFP reported neutralizing 2,018 NPA rebels and their supporters, capturing 149 NPA encampments, and the seizure or surrender of about 1,134 firearms and 531 anti-personnel mines.

Well, it doesn't mean a thing! Because they have not talked the numbers between actual NPA rebels and mere supporters the numbers look rather inflated. Remember, at last count there were only 780 NPA rebels left. 1,108 is 42% above the number of alleged remaining rebels! Has anyone else noticed this continuing discrepancy of reporting the number of NPA rebels and supporters neutralized versus the number of actual NPA rebels remaining? 

Meanwhile, actual rebels do continue to be neutralized. A leader linked to the deaths of soldiers was recently killed in a clash. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1283026

A ranking leader of the Communist Terrorist Group (CTG) in the Bicol Region was killed following a 10-minute armed encounter between government forces and around five New People's Army (NPA) members in Barangay Magogon, Camalig, Albay, the 9th Infantry Division (9ID) reported on Tuesday.

In a report, Maj. Frank Roldan, 9ID spokesperson, said troops of the 31st Infantry Battalion (31st IB), together with personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP), encountered the group Monday night.

Roldan identified the leader, who used the aliases "Jerry," "Josam," "Floyd" and "Maeng," as the leader of the Regional Sub-Office Guerrilla Operations of the Bicol Regional Party Committee.

"Following the exchange of gunfire, Josam was found dead at the encounter site after his companions reportedly left him behind," Roldan said in an interview.

Government forces recovered a Glock 17 9mm pistol, subversive documents and personal belongings.

He said Josam had been a member of the NPA for more than three decades and had served in various leadership positions within the communist terrorist group in Bicol.

He was also reportedly facing multiple criminal charges, including several counts of murder and attempted murder, robbery with homicide, and multiple murder with frustrated attempted murder.

Roldan added that Josam was the principal suspect in the killing of two soldiers who were conducting rescue operations and buying supplies in Barangay Cotmon, Camalig, in February 2023.

The 9ID also renewed its call for remaining CTG members to abandon the armed struggle and return to the fold of the law through the government's reintegration programs.

It's amazing that the AFP has claimed the NPA is leaderless when they keep killing leaders. Another NPA leader was arrested.

https://mb.com.ph/2026/08/31/ex-npa-leader-falls-to-authorities-in-nueva-ecija

The remaining pillar of what was once a formidable communist rebel structure operating in the Cordillera and Ilocos regions has fallen into the hands of authorities.

John Lee Hondrado, alias “Lig-on,” an alleged remnant of the Ilocos-Cordillera Regional Committee (ICRC) and former leader of the dismantled Kilusang Larangang Gerilya (KLG) North Abra, was arrested in Nueva Ecija in what security forces described as a major blow to the remaining network of the group.

The Philippine Army’s 5th Infantry Division (5ID) said Hondrado was arrested in Barangay Parista, Lupao, Nueva Ecija, on August 21 in a joint operation with the Philippine National Police (PNP), including the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).

The military described Hondrado as the last remaining member of the ICRC, a development that could signal the final collapse of the regional communist structure that once operated across parts of the Cordillera and Northern Luzon.

Hondrado, also identified as a former leader of KLG North Abra, had allegedly remained at large even after the guerrilla unit was dismantled.

Authorities arrested him while serving warrants for attempted homicide and violations of laws on the illegal manufacture, sale, acquisition, possession, and ownership of firearms and ammunition.

His arrest came five months after security forces launched a sweeping crackdown against alleged ICRC members.

On March 11, authorities arrested 10 alleged active members of the ICRC in simultaneous operations in Fairview, Quezon City, and Tarlac City. The suspects were allegedly linked to rebel operations in Abra, Kalinga, and Apayao.

The arrests were followed by the surrender of two other high-ranking communist terrorist group officials in Tabuk City, Kalinga, bringing the total number of persons accounted for in the earlier operations to 12.

Among those identified was Gabriel Kennedy Lao-ing Bangibang, described as a former KLG Baggas secretary and National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) consultant. He is now detained at the BJMP-Kalinga District Jail.

Also identified were Theresa Falitnang Forag, an alleged ICRC member from Abra, and Javar Anglao Sugao, described as a former KLG Baggas intelligence officer and alleged vice commanding officer of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Kalinga.

Other alleged members included Renato Ginez, Rani Francella Tuazon, Marc Arriane Mendiola y Tolentino, and Bobby Calsiyao Yag-ao, a former KLG Baggas member and alleged NPA Abra assistant medic.

The earlier suspects were wanted for offenses ranging from attempted and frustrated murder to qualified trafficking in persons and illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

With Hondrado now in custody, government security forces believe they may have closed in on what was left of the ICRC’s once-sprawling network.

However, authorities are not yet declaring the fight over.

Security forces continue to track possible underground operatives and supporters and are monitoring any attempt to rebuild or revive dismantled communist structures in the Cordillera and Northern Luzon.

There are certainly more leaders out there. 

There are definitely more NPA arms caches waiting to be discovered. The Army recovered another one recently. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1283323

Army troopers from the 30th Infantry Battalion (30IB) recovered firearms and ammunition hidden by remnants of the New People's Army (NPA) during an operation Thursday in Barangay Lobo, Cantilan, Surigao del Sur.

The cache included an M14 rifle, an M1 Garand rifle, five 20-round detachable box magazines, 32 rounds of .30-caliber ammunition, and 89 rounds of 7.62x51 mm ammunition.

In a statement on Friday, 30IB commander Lt. Col. Rey Vergel Annogui stressed that the recovery further weakens the capability of NPA remnants to conduct armed activities.

He said the seizure also helps prevent the resurgence of armed conflict in previously affected communities in Cantilan and across Surigao del Sur.

"This successful recovery demonstrates our troops' unwavering commitment to protecting communities and sustaining the gains we have achieved in our areas of responsibility," Annogui said.

He added that 30IB will continue efforts to keep NPA weapons from being used to threaten residents and disrupt peace in the province.

"We also call on our communities to remain vigilant and continue working with us in building a safer, more peaceful, and progressive Surigao," Annogui said.

They never tell us the conditions of these weapons. The must be operational though if they are worthy enough to be reported on. 

Mindoro has experienced a dramatic recovery after beating the insurgency. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1283318

Improving economic conditions in the province of Occidental Mindoro has resulted in a reduction of poverty and insurgency incidents.

In a statement released by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) on Friday, Occidental Mindoro Lone District Rep. Leody Tarriela said the province's dramatic economic turnaround — from 2.1 percent growth to a nation-leading 11.2 percent — offers compelling evidence that bringing roads, electricity, livelihoods and basic government services to formerly conflict-affected communities can break the cycle of poverty and insurgency.

He added that the province’s transformation demonstrates in concrete terms the principle behind the government’s whole-of-nation peace and development strategy: lasting peace cannot be secured by security operations alone, but must be sustained by development that people can see, use and feel in their everyday lives.

Tarriela declared that infrastructure has opened communities once isolated by geography, poverty and decades of armed conflict.

His remarks came amid Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showing Occidental Mindoro posting an extraordinary economic expansion, alongside recent statements from the National Anti-Poverty Commission and Presidential Adviser on Poverty Alleviation Secretary Larry Gadon linking poverty reduction and inclusive development with the weakening of conditions historically exploited by insurgent groups.

For decades, Occidental Mindoro was known as the country's "brownout capital" due to chronic power interruptions lasting from 16 to 18 hours daily, while many remote communities in the province remained vulnerable to communist insurgency.

Improved power supply, expanding infrastructure and sustained peace and development interventions have helped create conditions for investment, employment and greater economic activity.

Power interruptions have been substantially reduced, while seven of the province’s 11 municipalities had attained insurgency-free status by 2024.

“The 11.2 percent growth is not just a number—it is a symbol of real change,” Tarriela said. And with improved power supply, the lawmaker said investors came to Occidental Mindoro, bringing in more jobs and opportunities.

With this development, Tarriela said poverty and hunger fell, with government services now truly felt. And this is why, Tarriela said, why people no longer join or support armed groups.

He cited the municipality of Magsaysay as a concrete example of development reaching communities on the ground.

Magsaysay became the first municipality in the country to complete an infrastructure project under the FY 2026 Local Government Support Fund–Support to the Barangay Development Program (LGSF-SBDP), making Mimaropa the first region nationwide to report completed projects under the FY 2026 program.

Under the FY 2026 SBDP, eligible cleared barangays receive funding for high-impact community projects such as farm-to-market roads, water systems, school buildings, health stations and rural electrification—investments designed to address the very conditions of isolation and underdevelopment that allowed insurgency to persist for decades.

Tarriela likewise cited Sablayan, where farm-to-market roads and other development initiatives have begun connecting previously isolated communities to markets, schools, health facilities and government services. He also explained that isolation imposes a heavy economic burden on poor communities.

“Kung maganda ang buhay ng tao at kumakain ng tatlong beses sa isang araw, nakapag-aral ang mga anak nila—doon nababawasan ang insurhensya (if the people are having a good life and eating three times a day and able to send their children to school—insurgency will be greatly reduced)," Tarriela said.

He thanked President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and the NTF-ELCAC for sustaining development interventions in communities emerging from decades of insurgency, stressing that programs such as the BDP help convert security gains into lasting economic and social progress.

Tarriela acknowledged that Occidental Mindoro still faces challenges, particularly in achieving fully reliable electricity and consolidating lasting peace across the province. But its experience, he said, demonstrates what can happen when the government addresses conflict not only through security measures, but by confronting the poverty, isolation and lack of opportunity on which insurgency has historically thrived.

He called for the expansion and sustained funding of the Barangay Development Program, saying many communities across the country are still waiting for the roads, water systems, schools, health facilities, electricity and livelihood opportunities now transforming parts of Occidental Mindoro.

This is laughable!! "The province's dramatic economic turnaround — from 2.1 percent growth to a nation-leading 11.2 percent — offers compelling evidence that bringing roads, electricity, livelihoods and basic government services to formerly conflict-affected communities can break the cycle of poverty and insurgency." Are you telling me that bringing civilization to a backwards area brings economic growth and lifts people out of poverty!? WOW!!  It truly is a case of good governance being a counterinsurgency program instead of the norm! This is literally what a functioning government is supposed to do by default.