By Glazyl Y. Masculino
BACOLOD City – Residents in two villages in Vallehermoso, Negros Oriental condemned the alleged atrocities by the New People’s Army (NPA).
People from Barangays Don E. Villegas and Malangsa signed resolutions declaring the NPA persona non-grata during a dialogue at the Multi-Purpose Building in Barangay Don E. Villegas last Wednesday.
According to the Army, this declaration is a result of the joint efforts of the Vallehermoso Municipal Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (MTF-ELCAC) through the immersion of the Community Support Program (CSP) Team of the Army’s 62nd Infantry Battalion (IB) in both villages.
The Army said that through the CSP, people were enlightened about the alleged activities of the NPA such as extortion, illegal recruitment of minors and farmers, and human rights violations.
The CSP team also identified and addressed the issues that are being used by the NPA as alleged propaganda against the government, the Army also said.
The Vallehermoso MTF-ELCAC aims to link barangay and municipal levels of government to regional agencies in order to harmonize peace, development, and security efforts, and consequently, formulate solutions to resolve the nation’s decades-long insurgency problem.
The 62nd IB and Vallehermoso Municipal Police Station have assured their safety and vowed to continuously support the Vallehermoso MTF-ELCAC in attaining the peace and development of the municipality.
Meanwhile, the residents also took their Oath of Allegiance to the government and vowed to do their part in putting an end to the insurgency problem in central Negros, according to the Army.
