BUTUAN CITY – The government forces, relying on information provided by an ex-NPA rebel, swooped down in a mountainous and forested area at the side of Bagul River and discovered large arms cache left by the Communist New People’s Army Terrorists (CNTs) in Barangay Kasapa ll, La Paz, Agusan del Sur.
In a phone interview with The Manila Bulletin late Tuesday afternoon, 2nd Lt. Alexelle Joyce A Quijano of the Civil Military Operations (CMO) Officer of 60th Infantry (Mediator) Battalion said the troops found one Ultimax Light Machine Gun (LMG), 10 pieces of AK 47 Rifles, seven pieces of M16 Armalite Rifles, one M14 Rifle, one M79 Grenade Launcher, 1 Garand Rifle and one M16 Rifle with incomplete parts, long and short magazines, and assorted live ammunitions.
“Our operating troops are still scouring the area to look for other war materials that are possibly hidden by the CNTs,” the 60th IB CMO officer said.
The 22 cached assorted high-powered firearms (HPFAs) of the New People’s Army (NPA) were discovered during a retrieval operation launched by the 60th IB, 10th Infantry (Agila) Division at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 11.
The retrieval operations, done upon the revelation made by a former NPA member, was personally spearheaded by the 60th IB commander Lt. Col. Merrill C. Sumalinog.
“This former NPA pinpointed the exact location to our commanding officer of the 60th IB last week that led to the immediate deployment of troops for retrieval operations,” 2nd Lt. Quijano said.
The rebel returnee was only identified as certain “Ka Bolo” (name withheld for his safety), former member of the Weakened Guerilla Front 3 (WGF3), Sub-Regional Committee 4 (SRC 4) of the CPP-NPA Southern Mindanao Regional Committee (SMRC) who recently surrendered to 60th IB last April 05.
The ex-rebel revealed during the initial custodial debriefing that these high-powered firearms were owned by his former comrades who recently yielded to the folds of the law who once belonged to the dismantled group of Guerilla Front 3 (GF 3), Sub-Regional Committee 4 (SRC 4), SMRC.
He added that these firearms were supposed to be utilized in the resurgence of their lost grounds.
"This is another big achievement not just for the 60th IB but for the whole nation,” said Lt. Col. Sumalinog, in a statement.
“The retrieval of these firearms has seriously impaired the NPA at large, and this marks the total destruction of Guerilla Front 3 (GF3), Sub-Regional Committee 4 (SRC 4), SMRC and their capability to reorganize their armed group nor to recover their former mass bases and supporters,” he said.
“This incapacitated, if not, weakened their potential to revive their power in deceiving people. Rest assured that you can rely on your armed forces to continue to protect the peaceful environment in the area of Agusan del Sur, Davao del Norte and Davao de Oro to achieve a peaceful and developed society that we all envisioned,” Lt. Col. Sumalinog added.
The discovered firearms are now under the custody of 60th IB and soon will be turned over to the Philippine National Police (PNP) for proper disposition and will be later on enrolled to the ECLIP for remuneration.