T’Boli, South Cotabato (SC) – The municipality of T’boli’s newly elected Mayor Keo Dayle T. Tuan awards immediate cash assistance amounting to P20,000.00 each to two (2) Communist NPA Terrorists who surrendered through the joint efforts of the 6th Civil Military Operations Battalion, 7th Infantry Battalion, 11th Special Forces Company, 5th Special Forces Battalion (5SFBN) and the Philippine National Police on July 2 at Barangay Edwards, T’Boli, South Cotabato.
The Provincial Joint AFP-PNP Intelligence Committee (JAPIC) validated the surrenderees as @JL former political guide and @Ratrat, an NPA in the Barrio (Milisyang Bayan/ Yunit Milisya/Local Guerilla Unit) of Platoon Brigol, Guerilla Front 73, (now Guerilla Front Musa) Far South Mindanao. They also yielded one (1) caliber .30 m1 Carbine rifle, one (1) caliber .45 Thompson sub-machine gun and one (1) International Humanitarian Law (IHL) – banned anti-personnel landmine. Both surrenderees’ belong to the T’boli tribe operating in the boundaries of South Cotabato, Saranggani and Sultan Kudarat provinces. The surrenderees’ identities were withheld for the purpose of security.
Mayor Keo Dayle T. Tuan said that he will continue the programs of his father, former Mayor Dibu S. Tuan that are anchored in the National Task Force Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) and Executive Order No. 70 to maintain the continuous peace, order, and development of T’Boli town through the continuous delivery of basic and social services to the far-flung and isolated sitios of T’Boli and the continuous implementation of the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) to help surrenderees return to their families, communities and mainstream, society.
“As the newly elected mayor, one of my priorities is on peace, order and security of our town because we would like more investors to come in and further develop our town as the premiere agricultural, ecological and cultural tourism destination in South Cotabato. Violence, terrorism and criminality has no place here in our tribal municipality, “ Mayor Tuan, said.
It can be recalled that from October 2021, series of combat encounters in Lake Sebu and T’Boli transpired which resulted in the neutralization of @JENROSE, the deputy secretary of Guerilla Front MUSA and three other CNTs and the influx of surrenders of regular CNTs and NPA in the barrios.
T’boli Local Government Unit serves as one of the towns of South Cotabato that has best practices in the implementation of the Retooled Community Support Program (RCSP) and E-CLIP as mandated by the EO 70.
Meanwhile, the surrenderees were also presented to Brigadier General Pedro C Balisi Jr, Commander, 1st Mechanized Infantry (Maaasahan) Brigade and Major General Roberto Capulong, Acting Commander of the 6th Infantry Division and Joint Task Force Central.
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