CATBALOGAN CITY– The reported incident of families fleeing at their village in San Jose de Buan, Samar was orchestrated by the New People’s Army (NPA) and its alleged front groups.
Thus claimed Major Gen.Raul Farnacio, commanding general of the 8th Infantry Division.
He was reacting to a report that about 42 families, consisting of 132 individuals of which 51 were children, said to have fled their village of Hagbay in San Jose de Buan last March 17, 10 days after government troops belonging to the 87th Infantry Battalion engaged NPA members in a firefight.
Bayan Sinirangan Visayas, on its social media post, said that village officials issued a warning of another encounter between the military and NPA members as more soldiers were deployed in the village.
“The main reason behind this dirty tactics being used by the terrorists is to discredit the peace and development efforts of the CSP Team in helping conflict affected communities to progress and develop,” Farnacio, in a statement, said.
Farnacio added that the mass evacuation was the same strategy being employed by the communist group in the village of Bay-ang, San Jorge, also in Samar, which is to create a chaotic situation within the community and blame the government troops.
And these terrorists will then demand for the soldiers to pull out from the said community, the Army general official added.
The top military official then call for rebel groups not to resort to violence but instead lay down their arms and avail of the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) being offered by the government.
“Go back to the mainstream of our society, and live a normal and progressive life,” Farnacio said. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)
