Mt Province: zone of peace for gov’t troops, NPA rebs’training area

By Myds Supnad

CAMP BADO DANGWA, Benguet- While the military leadership is preparing to declare Mountain Province a zone of peace, New People’s Army rebels are also utilizing it as training ground and staging area against security forces of the government, a top military general said Monday.

Maj. Gen. Gregorio Catapang, Jr. commander of the Northern Luzon Command, said “despite peace efforts and economic development the government is initiating for Mt. Province, Kalinga and neighboring provinces in Region 2, the area also appears as center of NPA rebels using it as training ground and staging area to kill policemen and army soldiers.”

Irked by the recent killing of two army soldiers in Kalinga, Catapang said that they have no other recourse but to hunt the rebels in the area. “I have already ordered that every unit of the NPA will be hunted down individually by a certain special intelligence group of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, until they (rebels) are all neutralized; they are only now few and we can easily identify them one by one or unit by unit,” said Catapang.

The two-star army general said he will call for a command conference in the region with top Philippine National Police officials so the PNP wil join in hunting for remaining rebels operating in Cordillera.

On august 30, two Army soldiers were killed while another three soldiers,  including a lieutenant were wounded, during an encounter   between government Forces and the New People’s Army rebels in SitioTomiangan, Barangay Dupag, Tabuk City, Kalinga.

           

Killed in action were Corporals Rex Ragas and Dominador Concordia while wounded were Lt. Cesar Carsido, PFC Marnel Langnga and PFC Kennedy Savalla, all of the  17th Infantry Battalion.

     

Members of the Police Regional Office Cordillera and the Philippine Army captured last week a big NPA camp in the remote barangay of Aguid, Sagada, Mountain Province used by communist rebels as staging area for their previous attacks on police personnel in the province.

The capture of the NPA camp was reportedly done by police and military units.

Two policemen were injured in the initial attempt to overrun the camp Thursday morning.

Intelligence information gathered that the Communist Party of the Philippines /NPA under the KilusangLarangan Guerilla Marco Command operating in Mt. Province established the Aguid camp.

The CPP/NPA had reportedly utilizing improvised explosive device (IED) against government troops as proven in their previous operation such as in the ambush of PNP trainees in Tadian, Mt. province and the ambush of the PNP SAF personnel in Cagayan province.

The capture of the NPA camp was made possible through joint personnel of the Cordillera police, 54th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army and the Philippine Air Force, said Catapang.