HUNDREDS of residents of EB Magalona staged a condemnation rally against the New People's Army (NPA) over the killing of Barangay Tanod Elmer Ortencio before his interment at a public cemetery in Brgy XIV, Victorias City on April 25, 2021.
Based on the press statement of the 79th Infantry Battalion, the family, friends, residents and barangay officials of Consing condemned the inhumane and unjust act of NPA terrorists in killing Ortencio.
Aside from the local populace, representatives from the Youth for Peace Northern Negros Chapter, Anti-Crime and Terrorism Community Involvement and Support Partylist, Guardians and other organizations also joined the condemnation rally.
Locals at the rally held up banners and placards calling for an end to the killings, harassments, extortion and deception of civilians by the communist terrorist group, expressing their extreme anger towards Communist NPA Terrorists (CNTs).
Ortencio was abducted by armed individuals on the afternoon of April 13, 2021, and was found dead at a bamboo plantation hours later with a gunshot wound in the head in Hacienda Margarita, Barangay Consing, EB Magalona.
Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Alvaran, commanding officer of 79IB, expressed his support for the move of residents in the area.
"We in the Philippine Army appreciate the effort of the barangay officials and the local populace in condemning the atrocities made by the communist terrorists," Alvaran said.
"This incident is another wake-up call to all Negrenses to shun whatever support they have to the CNTs. Do not be deceived by their twisted ideology. Let us join hands and continue our efforts to unmask the true character of the CTGs (communist terrorist groups) and finally put an end to the abuses and violence of these terrorist groups," Alvaran added.
Meanwhile, Colonel Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd Infantry Brigade commander, said, “The activity only goes to show that our locals are already aware of the deceptive tactics of the communist terrorist group (CTG) in the area, thus, they are now actively participating in the government’s thrusts in restoring peace and bringing development and progress in the locality."
"The locals already knew who to trust and collaborate with in order for their barangays to attain their aspirations in life. Their all-out support to the government activities further indicates that they strongly condemn the hostilities perpetrated by the CTGs," he added.