TWO New People’s Army (NPA) rebels were killed in separate clashes which ensued while the troops are providing security in the distribution of the social amelioration program (SAP) fund by the national government in Mindanao, a top military official disclosed.
The first clash happened at noontime Thursday, April 16, in kilometer 22, Sitio San Francisco, Campawan village, Baganga, Davao Oriental.
Major General Jose Faustino, Jr., commander of Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom), said the troops from the Army’s 67th Infantry Battalion were conducting security operations in preparation for the SAP distribution when they encountered a group of NPA rebels.
The firefight lasted for about 30 minutes after which the NPA rebels fled leaving behind their two slain comrades; three AK-47 rifles; one M-16 Armalite rifle; three improvised explosive devices (IEDs); and, subversive documents.
Faustino said the troops of the same unit, while in pursuit operation, clashed again with the same group of NPA rebels around 9:30 a.m. Friday, April 17 in the village of Campawan, Baganga, Davao Oriental.
The troops recovered one Ak-47 and M4 rifles which the NPAs abandoned when they fled.
Faustino said the third clash occurred around 6:35 a.m. Friday at Sitio Mikit in the village of San Martin, Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur.
He said the troops of the Army’s 3rd Special Forces Battalion were providing security to the Municipal Social Welfare and Development (MSWD) personnel when they clashed against 30 NPA rebels.
He said the firefight lasted for about 30 minutes. The troops have recovered one AK-47 rifle, two M-16-A1 Rifles with an M-203 grenade launcher, one M653 rifle, ten backpacks, five bandoleers with ammunition, and a commercial radio abandoned by the NPA rebels, who fled to different directions.
He said the troops received reports that the NPA rebels were planning to extort from the recipients of the national government’s SAP.
The top military official said that no one among the troops were either killed or wounded in the separate clashes.
“Let us ensure that the implementation of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAs) will not be hampered and shall reach its intended recipients. Let us not be deceived by the communist terrorist group’s treacherous ceasefire declaration,” Faustino told the troops.
The military and police were tasked to provide security and ensure the safety of the implementation of SAP aside from the support being undertaken in the implementation of community quarantine of the different local government units. (SunStar Zamboanga)