Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa on Tuesday, April 27, warned that communists and terrorists will likely benefit if the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) is defunded of its P19-billion budget.

Echoing Senate President Vicente Sotto III’s view, Dela Rosa said he finds it unfair to to defund the NTF-ELCAC if this was only triggered by the alleged red-tagging of community pantry organizers, specifically of Patricia Non, who organized the first pantry in Maginhawa in Quezon City, by the agency’s spokesperson Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade, Jr.

The former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief defended Parlade, saying the military official was only doing a background check on community pantry organizers.

If senators push through with removing the funds allocated for the NTF-ELCAC, Dela Rosa said those who will stand to gain are the Communist Party of the Philippines, New Peoples’ Army and the National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

“Hindi po tama. Para sa akin ay wrong move ‘yon (It’s not right. For me, defunding it would be a wrong move),” Dela Rosa said in an interview with DWIZ.

“Dahil dapat i-separate natin ‘yong personality ni Parlade bilang isang anti-communist at yung NTF-ELCAC bilang isang ahensya ng gobyerno na (We need to separate Parlade’s personality as an anti-communist and the NTF-ELCAC as a government agency that has been) very effective in gaining grounds against the CPP-NPA-NDF,” he said.

The senator pointed out Malacañang has already said that a bigger portion of the P19-billion budget — amounting to P16.4-billion — is going to be utilized to fund for development projects in barangays already cleared of insurgencies.

“Sasabihin ng mga taumbayan doon na nakatira sa mga cleared barangays na naghihintay, nag-aabang na dumating 'yong kanilang mga barangay development programs, sabihin nila ‘Itong gobyerno na ito walang isang salita' (The people living in those cleared barangays who are waiting for funds for their barangay development programs will be disappointed at the government for reneging on its promise),” Dela Rosa said.

“'Mabuti pa bumalik na lang tayo sa NPA.’ So, sino makikinabang? 'Yong NPA, ‘di ba?” (They will say: ‘Let’s go back to being part of the NPA.’ So will benefit? Those NPAs will),” the lawmaker stressed.

Some senators and House lawmakers are seeking a review of the P19.1-billion budget given to the NTF-ELCAC after red-tagging civilians involved in the community pantries that have sprouted in Metro Manila and other parts of the country.

On Monday, Senator Joel Villanueva led four other senators in filing Senate Resolution No. 707 which seeks an inquiry into how the NTF-ELCAC is spending its money and possibly realigning the agency’s funds to boost the government’s COVID-19 response.

On Tuesday, 15 senators signed Senate Resolution No. 709, which seeks to censure Parlade for calling the senators “stupid” when they pressed for a review and possible defunding of the agency’s P19-billion budget.