A NATIONAL agency official encouraged the local government units (LGU) to localized negotiation with rebels in a bid to yield a more effective peace process.
Department of the Interior and Local Government–Cordillera Director Marlo Iringan, during the State of the Region Address (Sore) last week said LGU through the local chief executives are being urged to reach out and keep their communication lines open to prospective surrendereers of various groups.
“There is a better chance of negotiations to be successful,” said Iringan.
Iringan said local chief executives are more attuned to the situation in their areas which makes them ideal peace negotiators.
Baguio City Mayor Mauricio Domogan, who also chairs the Regional Development Council (RDC) of the Cordillera said engagement is being done to all those who want to talk to the government but said “the problem starts when rebels do not want to talk with the LGU, we cannot do anything.”
Domogan said he has facilitated the surrender of rebels in the city when groups personally went to him for assistance.
During the Sore, the Development Administration and Good Governance report on the Annual Regional Development showed the increase of insurgency statistics of Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), National Democratic Front (NDF), and New People's Army (NPA) --(CNN) surendereers from 27 in 2015 to 33 NPA members and 77 supporters of Milisyang Bayan (people’s army) in 2016.
Weeks ago, the Philippine National Police (PNP) reported there were nine incidents of insurgency from January to May 2017 during the joint RDC and the Regional Peace and Order Council meeting.
Police reported there were 28 neutralized CNN members with five arrests, 22 surrenderees and a lone death.
In the same meeting, the PNP reported, overall crime volume dropped by 34.10 percent this year with 3,847 incidents compared to last year with 5,838 on the same period.
Index crimes also dropped to 58.22 percent representing 834 incidents compared to the 1,996 from the previous year.
Police also reported a drop in non-index crimes by 21.58 percent with 3,013 cases logged compared to the high of 3,842 last year. (Maria Elena Catajan)