National Security Adviser (NSA) Hermogenes Esperon Jr. challenged senators and congressmen on Saturday, May 1, to defund the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) if they want the national government's anti-insurgency efforts to go to waste.
Esperon, vice chairperson of the NTF-ELCAC, emphasized that nothing good will come out from the calls of several lawmakers to take back the task force's budget for the Barangay Development Program (BDP), its pet project.
"Itong problema ng CPP-NPA ay 53 years na. Kung gusto niyong patuloy na mayroong sunugan, pangongotong, at pagpatay sa countryside eh 'di kalimutan na niyo itong anti-insurgency, itong NTF-ELCAC para magkagulo na talaga (The problems brought by the CPP NPA have been on-going for 53 years already. If you want the burning, extortion, and killings in the countryside to continue, forget this anti-insurgency and the NTF-ELCAC so all hell breaks loose)," Esperon said at a virtual "Laging Handa" press briefing.
Several senators and congressmen have called for the realignment of the NTF-ELCAC's P19.2-billion budget to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) response after two of the task force's spokespersons were accused of red-tagging organizers of the community pantry intiative that aim to help the individuals affected by the pandemic.
But Esperon argued that defunding the task force would mean the cancellation of the BDP which aims to bring development projects in 822 barangays that are former guerilla bases but have been cleared of communist influence by government forces from 2016 to 2019. Of the entire NTF-ELCAC budget, P16.5 billion is allotted for the BDP.
Under the BDP, a "cleared" barangay is entitled to P12-million worth of development projects which include the establishment of farm-to-market roads, water system, school facilities, health centers, electrification, evacuation centers, and livelihood projects.
"'Yun ang ating Barangay Development Program na gustong ipa-defund ng senado, mga ibang senador at ibang congressmen. Karamihan sa mga congressmen na ayaw niyan ay 'yung may simpatiya sa NPA (This is our Barangay Development Program that some senators and congressmen want to defund. Most of the congressmen who don't want this are sympathizers of the NPA)," Esperon claimed.
The issue of the budget defunding was floated after NTF-ELCAC spokespersons Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. and Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Undersecretary Lorraine Badoy received backlash for red-tagging Ana Patricia Non, one of the organizers of the community pantry initiative in Quezon City.