DAVAO CITY – "Ka Oris", whose real name is Jorge Madlos and is considered as the top leader of the New People's Army (NPA) in Mindanao, was killed in an encounter with government troops in Imapasugong town of Bukidnon at dawn on Saturday, Oct. 30, a military official confirmed.
In a phone interview, Army’s 4th Infantry Division Commander Maj. Gen. Romeo Brawner confirmed that Madlos was killed in an encounter following an airstrike using the Philippine Air Force’s FA-50 fighter jets.
Brawner said the death of Ka Oris was confirmed with the recovery of his body at the encounter site, adding that two more rebels were killed in the clash. There was no reported casualty from the government side.
The death of Madlos was a result of the relentless military operations, and from information provided by the civilians, he said.
Madlos, who was also the spokesperson of the National Democratic Front (NDF) in Mindanao, has become the face of the communist movement in the region as he has been known inviting journalists to his guerilla base in several occasions, particularly during the anniversary of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).
Sometime in September, Brawner called on Madlos to return to the folds of the law as he offered the rebel leader proper medical attention after it was reported that the NPA commander was having health problems.
“I am personally appealing to Jorge Madlos alias Ka Oris and his group to return to the peaceful path now and go down from the mountains so that they can be given vaccines and proper medical attention,” the military official said in a statement released before.
Madlos, who joined the communist movement in the early 1980s, has reportedly been suffering from a debilitating illness for about three decades already.
Brawner called on remaining NPA rebels to give up the armed struggle. “I’m calling on the rebels to avail of the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program so that they will no suffer the same fate as Ka Oris.
As of late Saturday, Brawner said government troops were still pursuing remaining NPA fighters in the hinterlands of Imapsugong. (Keith Bacongco)