ZAMBOANGA CITY — Soldiers have recovered a cache of firearms belonging to the Western Mindanao Regional Party Committee (WMRPC) of the New People’s Army (NPA) as part of an ongoing peace campaign.
Maj. Gen. Yegor Rey P. Barroquillo Jr., commander of the Joint Task Force (JTF)-ZamPeLan, said the weapons were discovered Sunday in Tudela. The arms cache included an M16 rifle, two CZ rifles, two AK-47 rifles, and six AK-47 magazines.
Barroquillo said the military defeated the WMRPC last year, marking the first time a regional party committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA-National Democratic Front has been fully dismantled.
“There are no remnants and no armed members left in Misamis Occidental and Zamboanga Peninsula,” he said. The recent recovery ensures the weapons “will never again be used to harm and create havoc in the communities or support other Communist Terrorist Groups in Mindanao.”
In other developments, a New People’s Army commander surrendered with his brother last Friday in Surigao del Sur after negotiations facilitated by his wife.
The Army’s 901st Infantry Brigade said in a statement that Edmar Maca and his brother Michael yielded to Lt. Col. Joselito Ante, commander of the 36th Infantry Battalion.
The two also led troops to a concealed cache of firearms and an improvised explosive device.
According to the brigade, the brothers’ decision to surrender was motivated by a desire to reunite with Maca’s newborn child. The 36th Infantry Battalion had rescued Maca’s wife, Ivy Angeles, after she was wounded during an encounter in June.
“The relentless military operations have made it hard for Edmar to survive,” Ante said.
Brig. Gen. Arsenio Sadural, commander of the 901st Infantry Brigade, noted that with the surrender of the two men, he anticipates more members of the group to follow.