Progressive groups slam black propaganda

PROGRESSIVE organizations filed Thursday a complaint with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) regional office on the spread of black propaganda materials against their coalition and other party-list groups.

The propaganda stated that Makabayan coalition, Bayan Muna, Anakpawis, Gabriela Women’s Party, Kabataan, Alliance of Concerned Teachers and Katribu are allegedly connected to underground insurgents.

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It was disseminated through text messages, e-mails and pamphlets, with a message saying the pork barrel funds or countrywide development funds being allocated to the party-list representatives are only being used to finance the operations of insurgents.

But Bayan Muna-Cordillera chair Manny Loste said “[the] black propaganda [is an] impunity and our group has been a victim of violent attacks in the past years.”

“There is no basis for this allegation because ever since we started to be part of the genuine opposition, we have been barred from receiving pork barrel. In fact, even if we received any, all these are accounted for as compared to the funds of district representatives and those party-lists that are pro-government,” he said.

Loste said the people can distinguish what is true and what is merely propaganda, claiming that it came from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which has been tracking militants down and linking them to New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.

“With our filing of complaint, we are expressing our fear that those proliferating (sic) these propaganda materials against us only want [us] to fail in the coming elections by desecrating the electoral process,” Loste said.

He also said the government only wants to lessen if not diminish the presence of progressive groups in Congress so government-initiated party-lists that are not “real representatives of the marginalized sector” will take reins and gain a monopoly.

Loste also scored government efforts to further diminish their ranks through extrajudicial means.

He said the complaint removes their present condition of fear of not having a free and fair election, and that people receiving the propaganda materials would somehow discern the truth.

Loste added that the propaganda materials are putting progressive groups in a bad light because of their criticisms against the current administration. (JM Agreda)