I DO not know why Jose Ma. Sison still makes it to the front pages despite the fact that his statements proceed from plain hallucination.
His recent declaration is that for the year 2019 the Communist Party of the Philippines–New People’s Army’s (CPP-NPA’s) main agenda is to oust President Rodrigo Duterte. Funny and pathetic because since day one of his trip to the fantasy land, where he wished to establish his communist-inspired and controlled government, he had always conspired with the disciples of political romanticism and took advantage of others who cannot accept the choice of the majority and in the process connive with the likes of Joma.
Joma is out of touch with reality and it does not help that he had long been out of the country. He professes to fight for but too scared to come back to lead a weary army who still believe in his utopian dream. Either that or he cannot abandon the good life in the Netherlands.
He blames the Duterte government for abandoning the peace talks when for nearly half a century all the past administrations, including his patron saint Cory Aquino who let him free from prison, had been wooing him to come back and participate in a free political process. The government even bended back and decriminalized communism giving rise to left-leaning politicians many of whom find home in Party-list system some representatives caught red handed tutoring impressionable indigenous youths how to handle firearms to fight government forces.
Joma never had the better opportunity to talk peace than with the Duterte government. Recall that in the height of the presidential campaign the Davao City Mayor was accused by his rabid political adversaries as a commie protector. For the record though, the Mayor had been in and out of NPA lairs to rescue prisoner of wars and sometimes bringing foodstuffs to the NPA guerillas. If there is any political leader who meant well and true to his desire for a normal life for the rebels it is this man Duterte.
But peace and normalcy does not hinge on the frivolous mind of Jose Ma. Sison. There’s a street lingo for that: “Kung ayaw mo, huwag mo”. (If you don’t want it so be it.) And so the man whom Sison wants to oust from Malacañang started with a new initiative - localize peace talks. Already the gains made headway as hundreds of NPAs have come back to the folds of the law, were given lands to till and housing units including a huge some of money to start them off in exchange for their firearms.
Joma wants to oust Duterte, some Catholic bishops pray that he get sick and die while Loida Lewis has not given up on her hopes that he will step down or ousted to have Leni Robredo take over. But how can this phantasmagoria come to a fruition when a huge majority of the Filipinos either describe Duterte “very good” or “excellent” while hundreds of rebels are still coming down from the jungles to be reunited with their families and opportunities that await them?