Manila: President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has 'made it clear' that he will not abolish the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), National Security Council (NSC) Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya said Wednesday.
According to Philippines News Agency, Malaya conveyed this during a Palace press briefing in response to Gabriela Party-list's call for Marcos to dismantle the task force. He emphasized that Marcos expressed satisfaction with the NTF-ELCAC's achievements in combating communist insurgency during the 7th Executive Committee Meeting held at Malaca±ang.
Malaya mentioned that the President highlighted the importance of capitalizing on the task force's successes to fully resolve the nation's long-standing insurgency issue. "I'm encouraged by the reports, our efforts are bearing fruit, we have to continue. It has been successful and we need to continue to invest in its success," Malaya quoted Marcos as saying during the meeting.
The NSC official pointed out that the task force has significantly impacted the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF), with the insurgency now at its lowest level in over five decades. Malaya reported that only one "weakened" guerrilla front remains in Camarines Sur, down from 89 active fronts when NTF-ELCAC was initially formed.
He credited the decline of the CPP-NPA to several factors, including the deaths of influential leaders such as Jose Maria "Joma" Sison, the neutralization of the Tiamzon couple, and the recent death of Myrna Sularte. Malaya also acknowledged the effectiveness of focused military and police operations, the Barangay Development Program, and ongoing localized peace efforts.
With diminishing mass support, Malaya noted that the communist group can no longer enforce its revolutionary taxes or permit-to-win and permit-to-campaign schemes, which were significant security challenges in past elections. "For this coming May elections, the CPP-NPA-NDF will no longer be a significant threat to the peaceful conduct of elections," he stated.
