The leadership of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army (CPP-NPA) is currently experiencing a breakdown of communication over the death of Jose Maria "Joma" Sison last month, the country's top police official said on Monday, Jan. 23.
Gen. Rodolfo Azurin, Jr., chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), said the breakdown of communication was due to leadership vacuum since CPP-NPA officials are yet to decide who would replace Sison and who would fill up other important posts in the communist rebels' top hierarchy.
"This is based on the information that we have been receiving, that there is a breakdown of communication among CPP-NPA members because they could not yet figure out who would replace the position vacated by Sison," said Azurin in a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City.
Sison died last month while in exile in the Netherlands where he had been staying for decades. He was 83.
Defense and security experts said the death of Joma Sison was a severe blow to the CPP-NPA since there are no other leaders who have his charisma.
The closest replacement, couple Benito and William Tiamzon, were reported to have been killed in a clash with soldiers in Catbalogan City. There is no solid confirmation, however, of their reported death.
"The PNP and the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) are taking advantage of the situation because we wanted more of them to surrender," said Azurin.
The national government, through the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), has been pursuing localized peace talks with the communist rebels.
The move reportedly led to the surrender of hundreds of CPP-NPA fighters and supporters in the past few years.
Based on the military data, the NPA has a remaining strength of more or less 2,000 fighters-- from over 25,000 in the 1980s.
The CPP-NPA's over 50 years of armed struggle is considered as one of the longest in the world.