In crosshairs Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has his eyes fixed on rebel militias. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

The government is now focused on convincing members of the Militia ng Bayan (People’s Militia) who constitute the mass base of New People’s Army (NPA) to turn their back on the rebels as the regular NPA is no longer a formidable force, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said yesterday.

“They (NPA) are not that strong because their number is only about fewer than 6,000. Some 1,000 armed rebels (have) already surrendered, so the remaining is 4,000,” Lorenzana said.

“But their militia is big, those who support them. If we reckon, there are about 50,000 nationwide. These militia are what we want to get,” he added.

The militia provide the mass support to the rebels and who also serve as reinforcement or as security to the regular NPA rebels when they visit communities.

“They are sometimes armed to beef up guerilla forces during encounters,” he said.

Lorenzana explained the military can secure members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front of the Philippines (CPP-NPA-NDFP) and their supporters who wanted to surrender and rejoin their loved ones and families in mainstream society.

“We can protect them. We have people in all areas ready to help, the local elected officials, police, military, DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development). In fact, it will be the whole government machinery willing to help,” he said.

The Defense chief added the threat posed by the CPP-NPA is waning, due to the localized peace talks and Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) added it is now the perfect time for NPA rebels to surrender.

“Our advice is for them to get out and surrender while they can and avail themselves of the government’s E-CLIP. They will be accorded relocation and security for their safety. It’s the best time to change the course of their lives. Abandon the armed struggle and take charge of your future,” AFP public affairs office chief Col. Noel Detoyato said.

Detoyato added the NPA is known to deal harshly with those thinking of surrendering to government forces.

“They are always being guarded and watched. They are also threatened. This was the same scenario when they conducted ‘Oplan Ahos’ which resulted in countless deaths within the revolutionary movement.

“The operation was done to get rid of those who were suspected to be spies,” he added.

“Oplan Ahos” took place from 1985 to 1986 and resulted in the death of an estimated 600 rebels in Mindanao.

The E-CLIP is the flagship program of the Duterte administration that seeks to effect social healing and national unity through a whole-of-nation approach towards the higher objective of having just and lasting peace.

These benefits do not serve as an end, but rather as means to aid those who surrender in securing a foothold in restarting their lives.

Two organizations, meanwhile, have been identified as being actively engaged in activities supporting the CPP-NPA-NDF, former communist rebels disclosed.

At the sidelines of a press conference by former rebels supporting a bill that seeks to lower the minimum age of criminal liability, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) and the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) were cited in the discussion exposing their linkages to the rebel group.

“Ka Jamie,” a teacher who claims to be witness to the struggle of various public school teachers in the country, said the CPP-NPA-NDF used the ACT in pushing for the communist group’s agenda.

“At first, we were only fighting for the low wage of educators,” she said.

She added she became an organizer of the Manila Public School Teachers Association.

Ka Jamie said she became a regular street demonstrator along with the Public School Teachers Association, calling for the salary increase of public school teachers.

Her involvements, she said, became deeper in the communist organization until she found herself teaching in the Pambansang Demokratikong Paaralan, an educational institution built by the communists which she refers to as “intentionally designed to foster a rebellious spirit within the students.”

The communist group, she said, has been recruiting minors and deceiving their families of the true cause of the organization.

“They easily deceive people who live in the countryside,” she added.

“I left because I want to go back and get rid of the illegal activities. What happens to the legitimate concerns of teachers?” Ka Jamie added.

Meanwhile, “Ka Ernesto,” another former rebel who claimed to have observed anomalies in the NUJP, also bared allegations against the group.

“They are using the NUJP as a shield to continue the protracted war,” he said.

Ka Ernesto, who claims to be an editor-in-chief in his time in college but had to stop because of his involvement in the communist group, said the journalists’ organization “sympathizes with the leftist group.”

“I am a witness as to how they control news on illegal activities happening within the CPP-NPA-NDF. They exclude the bad details,” he said.