Incoming national security adviser Clarita Carlos could be suspected as left-leaning by unscrupulous elements in the government or military due to her pronouncement that she wanted to stop red-tagging in the country.

Why is everything connected to good governance, right-thinking and being humane automatically being seen nowadays as related to the communist insurgency? A case in point (among several others) was when the creative, benevolent community pantries that fed hungry Filipinos at the height of the pandemic lockdowns were red-tagged.

Why label people unjustly? Doing so is a disservice to national progress and it paints the Philippines before the world as a “democracy” with a government that is always beleaguered with “nanlaban” tales or extrajudicial killings, and make the country perpetually accused of massive human rights violations.

Dear Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., our incoming president, if I may propose, with due respect to the current officials and people behind the mission of addressing our problem on the half-century-old communist insurrection: Let there be a reorganization and overhaul of leadership at the National Task Force to End Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) for a fresh, good start.

The NTF-Elcac is good in essence, but the task force is getting more and more paradoxical in its actuations. It’s time to come to our senses and have a grip on reality.

Crush the “communist armed conflict” and other armed rebellions in the country as we should (and must), but let’s do it in a reasonable, sane, resolute, incorruptible, humane way so that we can end them (indeed) once and for all.

Thus, let there be intelligence indeed (and heart) in the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency under the watch of Bongbong Marcos-appointed head, ex-police general Ricardo F. de Leon.

With prayers and faith in the Almighty, dear leaders, I wish all you well, especially you, Madam Carlos. God bless the Philippines!