The local armed communist struggle will eventually be over following the government's strides in the anti-insurgency operations, according to President Duterte.
The President highlighted the government's accomplishments in the quest to end the local communist insurgency, including the dismantling of communist fronts as well as the surrender of more than 17,000 rebels to the government, during his final address to the nation Monday.
With government aid, these former rebels have returned to the fold of the law and were "happily reintegrating" with society, Duterte said.
"With the support of our local government units, I am confident that support for the communist movement will continue to erode in the next few months," the President said in his sixth State of the Nation Address (SONA) Monday, July 26.
"And like the decades-old Moro rebellion in Mindanao, we will also bring an end to the armed struggle of the communists once and for all,"he said.
Citing the work of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), the President said the government made "great strides in addressing the root causes of the conflict by empowering people used by communists for decades.
In line with building safe and conflict-resilient barangays, he said the government worked towards the sustainable rehabilitation and development of communities where the communists used to operate.
"Through the NTF-ELCAC, we invested in farm-to-market roads, school buildings, water and sanitation , health stations, and livelihood ," he said.
The President also slammed anew the extortion activities of local communist groups, saying their leaders earns billions from such "taxation" and live rich lives while their members fighting on the ground die poor and hungry.
"Everybody, as everybody in this country, are paying taxes to the communists. The Communist Party earns billions but pass on a little to their fighting men who die for an ideology that is so rotten and corrupt," he said.
While party leaders were living comfortably, he said the poor communist rebels were fighting a "losing battle" with the government. "They waste lives, they enlist children and they are proud of it, but they deny it," he said.
The peace talks between the government and the rebels were terminated in 2017 after the President protested the atrocities committed against troops and civilians. Recently, he ordered government forces to shoot dead any armed communist rebel on sight.
The commander-in-chief reiterated his kill order during his SONA last Monday.
"So that my orders to the --- to you, if you see them walking around, kindly shoot them dead. I would be happy," Duterte told the country's security forces.