ILIGAN CITY -- A member of the communist terrorist group submitted himself to the military in Purok Bayan, Maribulan, Arabel, Sarangani Province on Thursday, Feb. 2.
Task Force GenSan Commander Colonel Galileo Goyena, Jr., identified the CTG member as ‘Jurib,’ a former member of the dismantled Guerilla Front 75, Far South Mindanao Region.
‘Jurib’ also turned over his firearm.
The surrender was the result of the whole-of-nation approach employed by the task force to convince the rebels hiding in the hinterlands of Sarangani to come out, said Goyena.
The former rebel voluntarily handed over cal. 30 sniper rifle and 10 7.62mm ammunition.
He also shared his testimonies regarding the false promises of their leadership and the hardships he experienced with the group.
Maj. Gen. Alex Rillera, Commander of Joint Task Force Central, said ‘Jurib’ will receive training and livelihood assistance from different government agencies through the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP), to make him a productive member of society again.
For his part, Western Mindanao Command Chief, Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, said that the armed forces are always ready to assist those who wish to return to mainstream society.
“Peaceful resolution is far better than ending armed conflicts on the battlefield," said Galido.
He said that the military will continue their relentless efforts to encourage the remnants of the communist terrorist group to return to the folds of the law.
“We attribute all our accomplishments to the local government units and all other members of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) who never cease to support us in our peace campaign against the remaining communist terrorists,” said Galido.