MANILA, Philippines July 29 — President Rodrigo Duterte issued a warning against the New People’s Army to respect the unilateral ceasefire his government declared last Monday or they might as well back fighting in the mountains.
Duterte made the warning after being informed that NPA rebels attacked members of CAFGU Active Auxilliary (CAA) on their way back to their camp in Barangay Gupitan, Kapalong, Davao del Norte on Wednesday morning, July 27.
One CAA was killed while four other CAAs were wounded.
The military said that the CAAs were on their way back to their camp at Sitio Patil, Brgy Gupitan in compliance to the unilateral ceasefire declared by the President during his SONA last July 25 when ambushed by a group of NPAs at Sitio Kamunoan of the said barangay.
The CAAs were already several days out of their camp on security patrol when the ceasefire was declared.
In his troop visit to the Southern Luzon Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in Lucena, Quezon, Duterte said he already sought a leftist congressman as well as peace negotiator Silvestre Bello III to send his warning to the NPA and the National Democratic Front and the Communist Party of the Philippines.
The President said he does not want the rebel group to be taking advantage of the unilateral ceasefire as an opportunity to attack government forces like what happened in Davao del Norte.
The President has given the NPA until midnight to give their side on the incident or he will back out from the peace talks.”
Are we in into this truce or are we not? Give me an answer until tonight otherwise balik tayo sa away,” Duterte said. (PCOO)
