Wednesday, August 27, 2008 Cops deny NPA recruitment activities By Jane Cadalig
POLICE in the region denied the communist-led New Peoples' Army (NPA) is on a recruitment binge in the Cordillera.
Police Regional Office-Cordillera (Procor) Director Eugene Martin said the recent press releases made by the NPA were mere propaganda of the communist group in order to bolster its image in the region.
Martin said there has been no reported recruitment of NPAs, contrary to assertions that the rebel group has been going around the provinces to persuade individuals to join the armed movement.
However, he said: "Almost always, there is an ongoing propaganda of the communist-terrorist groups, which is not new to the country which is why our efforts against insurgency are not (stopping)."
The provinces of Mt. Province, Abra and Kalinga are identified as among the most vulnerable areas to the insurgents' recruitment.
Recently, the NPA claimed responsibility for a number of operations against the Philippine Army and the Philippine National Police (PNP). The latest is the bombing of a cellular tower in Kalinga province.
Government has yet to verify this claim.
Martin said bombings of communication towers are one of the identified NPA terror acts.
