CPP-NPA Terrorist Squad surrenders, 8 high-powered firearms seized in MisOr

CLAVERIA, Misamis Oriental - A squad composed of twelve (12) CPP-NPA terrorists (CNTs) surrendered and revealed arms caches to the combined forces of the 58th Infantry Battalion (58IB) and the 2nd Scout Ranger Battalion (2SRB) at Sitio Langusahan, Brgy Minalwang, Claveria, Misamis Oriental yesterday, November 8, 2020.

According to Lt. Col Ricky Canatoy, Commanding Officer of 58IB, the surrenderers are members of the 3rd Platoon, HQF Neo, North Central Mindanao Regional Committee (NCMRC) under the leadership of alias Barman. Their surrender was made possible through the intervention of Hon. Rex Mansangcagan, Barangay Chairman of Brgy Minalwang, Claveria.

LTC Canatoy added that the 58IB and the 2SRB also seized firearms and war materials after the surrenderers voluntarily revealed arms caches where they hid their firearms. Seized from the arms caches in three different locations in the hinterlands of Barangay Minalwang are the following high-powered firearms:

Two (2) AK47 rifles

One (1) Garand rifle

One (1) M14 rifle

One (1) Carbine rifle

Two (2) M16 rifles

One (1) M653 rifle

The government troops also seized 770 different kinds of ammunition and hundreds of magazines and other war materiel.

According to alias Yan-Yan, the squad leader, they surrendered due to fatigue and hunger as they were always on the run day and night to evade the government forces that are incessantly conducting pursuit operations.

MGen Andres C Centino, Commander of 4th Infantry Division (4ID) and Joint Task Force Diamond, confirmed the relentless security operations of the AFP against the CNTs. He added that the surrender of the entire squad of CPP-NPA terrorists is an indication that the Focused Military Operations (FMO) being implemented by JTF-Diamond in Northern Mindanao has caused the demoralization of the armed group.

“Our continuous FMO will drain the resources of the CPP-NPA terrorists because they will not be able to extort money from business firms and farmers. We will continue to press the fight against these bandits. As we always emphasized in the past, without resources the CNTs will either surrender or abandon the armed struggle, and this incident proves it and we expect more surrenders in the coming days,” Centino said.

The surrenderers will be enrolled in the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) which provides livelihood and housing assistance, skills training, and firearms remuneration for surrendered firearms among others.

Source: Civil-Military Operations Office, 58th Infantry Battalion, Joint Task Force Diamond, PA