Palace says holiday truce meant to catch troops off guard

MALACAÑANG on Friday, December 21, accused the communist guerillas of declaring a holiday truce to catch the military off guard when they attack.

Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said there was negligence on the part of the military when they took the communists' offensives lightly.

Panelo was referring to the attack staged by the New People's Army (NPA) on a military detachment in Sibagat, Agusan del Sur on December 19. The rebels abducted two soldiers and carted away several firearms.

"'Yun nga ang problema, they (communists) have been declaring they will have this truce. So siguro naniwala naman 'yung mga tao natin sa ground na may truce so they did not anticipate those attacks," Panelo said in an interview with Palace reporters.

(That's the problem, they (communists) have been declaring they will have this truce. So perhaps, our soldiers on the ground believed there's a truce so they did not anticipate those attacks.)

"And now, it seems to me now that they are using the truce para to have our soldiers on the ground off guard. They're taking advantage of that [truce]," he added.

Around 50 NPA members reportedly attacked the New Tubigon Patrol Base in Sibagat, Agusan del Sur at around 3 a.m., Wednesday, which led to the hostage-taking of two Army soldiers and 12 Cafgu members.

The military has mounted a rescue operation for the abducted soldiers and civilian militia members.

On Thursday, December 20, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the military would continue to step up its operations against the communist guerillas, even after 14 people have been taken hostage by the NPA.

Earlier, the communist party announced that it would observe a ceasefire with the government forces during the holiday season to "freely enjoy" the celebration of its 50th founding anniversary.

The communists' truce will take effect at 12:01 a.m. of December 24 to 11:59 p.m. of December 26. Another ceasefire is scheduled for 12:01 a.m. of December 31 to 11:59 p.m. of January 1, 2019.

However, Lorenzana and the military did not recommend a holiday truce with the communists.

Panelo said the state forces should always be prepared for the communist rebels' possible offensives, whom he likened to a "thief in the night" who are ready to "come and assault" any government troops.

"Definitely it's not prudent. Nagkamali sila kaya (They made a mistake so) look what happened to them. Kaya (So) that should be a lesson for all of them," he said.

"They should always be like boy scouts, be prepared because they're like a thief in the night. They will come to you and assault you," he added. (SunStar Philippines)