Following a spike of surrenders last month, 30 more members of the communist terrorist New People’s Army (NPA) yielded to government forces over the past three weeks, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Sunday disclosed.
AFP Public Affairs Chief Colonel Edgard Arevalo said since the start of October, the AFP has been facilitating the surrender of more NPA members, some of whom voluntarily handed over their firearms to our troops.
“This affirms the continuous success of our focused military operations complemented by intelligence and civil-military efforts,” Arevalo said.
Arevalo said the latest surrenders took place on October 16 in Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat where five NPA members voluntarily turned themselves in to the 57th Infantry Battalion, of the Philippine Army. They were identified as Indo Sagpa Aquino who uses the alias ‘Six’, Amelio Bandala Limboy or ‘Primo’, Wilson Malubay Palon or ‘Jack’, Losion Samson Masot or ‘Mistah’, and Wilden Aquino Saliding or ‘Kugita.
The former NPA Guerilla Front 73 fighters also surrendered three high-powered firearms.
The first to surrender this month was a high-ranking NPA member who gave up to the 39th Infantry Battalion last October 1 in Arakan, North Cotabato. Alex Gawelan who uses the alias ‘Banate’ also yielded to authorities an M16 rifle. He was a member of the NPA’s Guerilla Front 53.
Other surrenders were facilitated in Abra, Surigao del Sur, Zamboanga Del Norte, Davao Oriental, Davao Del Norte, Compostela Valley, Occidental Mindoro, and Cagayan. A total of 14 high-powered firearms were collected from the rebels including M16, M14, AK47, and Garand rifles. (Francis T. Wakefield)
