The designation of suspended Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. and 12 others as “terrorists” in connection with their alleged role in a string of killings and harassment in the province fueled the Philippine National Police (PNP) to sustain its “aggressive” campaign against private armed groups (PAGs) with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) as a support force.
***(File photo: Philippine National Police)***
Police Colonel Redrico Maranan, chief of PNP public information office, said the police organization’s policy and campaign against PAGs will be sustained, if not further intensified, after the Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) designated Teves and others as terrorists.
“The campaign against PAGs will continue thru aggressive and honest law enforcement operations,” Maranan told reporters on Tuesday, August 11.
The PNP has been monitoring three active PAGs and 45 "potential" PAGs with an estimated 200 members and 400 firearms which it said could be used for partisan activities during elections.
Meanwhile, Col. Medel Aguilar, AFP spokesperson, said the military will support the national government’s campaign against PAGs with the PNP at the helm.
“This is a law enforcement matter. The PNP takes the lead,” he said.
The ATC issued Resolution No. 43 tagging Teves, his brother Pryde Henry Teves, and other members of the alleged armed group called by ATC as “Teves Terrorist Group” as terrorists.
The Teveses were linked by the authorities to the March 4 assassination of Negros Oriental Governo Roel Degamo in Pamplona town, where 10 people including the governor died while 18 others were injured.
The camp of the Teves brothers, on the other hand, repeatedly denied any involvement in the incident.
The Teves brothers also said they were saddened by the ATC’s decision to tag them as terrorists.
Lawyer Ferdinand Topacio, legal counsel of the embattled lawmaker, added that the development no longer surprised them as he accused the government of mobilizing all resources at its disposal to pin down his client.