The police and military forces have declared the town of Teresa in Rizal insurgency-free.
On Friday, June 9, officials of the Rizal Police Provincial Office (PPO), the Philippine Army’s Second Infantry Division, provincial and municipal government units signed a pact attesting that insurgency is no longer a threat in Teresa, Rizal.
Police Col. Dominic Baccay, PPO director, said the Declaration of Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS) for Teresa was supported by a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by the stakeholders.
(Photo from Rizal PPO Facebook page)
The MOU was inked by the municipal government officials, the provincial government, the police and the military to ensure that the town will remain free from terrorist threats or activities.
Teresa Mayor Rodel N. Dela Cruz, Vice Mayor Freddie F. Bonifacio, Governor Nina Ricci Ynares, represented by 2nd District Board Member Ricardo Bernados; Ms. Ann A. de Jesus, assistant regional director for operation, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency; Brig. Gen. Cerilo C. Balaoro, Jr., commander of the 202nd Infantry (Unifier) Brigade of the Philippine Army; Lt. Col. Erwin Y. Commendador, battalion commander of the 80th Infantry Battation of the 2nd Infantry Division; and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Rizal officials were the signatories of the pact.
Mayor Dela Cruz thanked the signatories during the signing ceremony as he urged the stakeholders, including the public, to help in maintaining order and security in the town.
The declaration of the SIPS, which also calls for the tagging of the Communist Party of the Philippines, New People’s Army, and the National Democratic Front as "persona-non-grata" in Teresa, was the second in the province since May, after the Philippine Army declared Tanay as an insurgency-free municipality.