Eleven members of the New People’s Army (NPA) surrendered to the different units of the Eastern Mindanao Command since Saturday.
Lt. Col. Ezra Balagtey, the spokesperson of EastMinCom, said the four members of the NPA surrendered to the government in two different instances on Oct. 19.
A certain Tonton, a squad leader of the NPA being monitored in the Cotabato- Davao City-Bukidnon tri-boundary, surrendered to barangay officials in Perez, Kidapawan City, North Cotobato at 9:30 a.m.
The surrenderee, a member of the Manobo tribe from Antipas, North Cotabato, brought along his M16 rifle and some bullets. He was initially turned over to the 72nd Infantry Battalion for custodial debriefing and assessment.
On a separate occasion, three members of the NPA being monitored in Surigao del Sur surrendered to the 3rd Special Forces Battalion through the help of Tandag City barangay officials in the afternoon of the same day.
They were identified as alias Kakar, 34, of Barangay Awisan, Tandag City, a former squad leader; alias Elmo, 37, of Barangay Castillo, San Miguel, Surigao del Sur, a former team leader; and an alias Rosa, 28, a former supply officer. They brought with them an M4 Bushmaster Carbine rifle.
Meanwhile, a guerilla unit in Masara lines along Maco and Mawab Compostela Valley continues to weaken, following the surrender of seven of its Militia ng Bayan members to the 71st Infantry Battalion in Barangay Nueva Visayas, Mawab on Oct. 17.
The seven who were identified through their aliases are Bebot/Olbot, Jojo, Tata, Jimmy, Bording, and Oning, 49.
Meanwhile, Lt. Gen. Felimon T. Santos Jr., commander of the Eastern Mindanao Command, calls on different stakeholders to facilitate the surrender of the NPA members.
“We appreciate the effort of our stakeholders, particularly the LGUs and BLGUs, who are reaching out in behalf of the whole government to those who wanted to surrender,” Santos said.
