DIGOS CITY, Davao del Sur –— Twenty-one former members of the New People’s Army (NPA) received P1.26 million in cash assistance on Monday, March 20, under the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) in a ceremony led by Davao Del Sur’s Provincial Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (PTF-ELCAC).
The ceremonial turn-over was held at the Davao del Sur Coliseum in Digos City.
E-CLIP is a program of the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU), formerly Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) that aims to provide a complete package of assistance to former members of the CPP-NPA, Militia ng Bayan (MB) and National Democratic Front (NDF) who surrendered and opted to lead new lives and side with the government towards lasting peace and development.
Lt. Colonel Ezra Balagtey, commanding officer of the Philippine Army’s 39th Infantry Battalion said that 19 former rebels received P65,000 livelihood assistance each while the remaining two were only qualified for P15,000 immediate assistance.
Before receiving the assistance, the 19 beneficiaries first went through different orientations, except for three months of training under the Tupad Pangako Program, the de-radicalization intervention for reintegration into their respective communities and families.
Jane, former medical officer of the Guerilla Front 51 of the Southern Mindanao Regional Committee said she was thankful that she was able to go back to normal life and was looking forward to better opportunities for her and her companions.
“We are thankful for the continuing effort of our partner agencies and the provincial government of Davao Del Sur to mainstream these former rebels,” Balagtey said.
The NPA is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines. The CPP-NPA rebellion is the world’s longest ongoing communist insurgency and is the largest, most prominent communist conflict in the Philippines. It has been waging a protracted war for 53 years now.
