THE 10th Infantry Division presented on Tuesday the gains that it has achieved in the fight against the communist armed conflict in the Davao Region during Peace, Law Enforcement and Development Support (PLEDS) Cluster meeting held at Balunto Hall, Camp General Manuel T Yan Senior in Mawab, Davao De Oro.
Major General Nolasco A. Mempin, division commander and PLEDS chair, only one guerilla front remained out of the 15 guerilla fronts and six Pulang Bagani commands at the start of the administration of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte in 2016.
PLEDS is part of the Regional Task Force in Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-ELCAC).
The presentation also showed that since the implementation of Executive Order Number 70 in 2018, the division recorded 367 armed encounters; 1,567 firearms seized and recovered, 1,614 rebels were either captured or killed or surrendered, 48 of them were leaders, and 322 barangays were cleared.
This prompted the government to declare the city and the five provinces free from the influence of the communist group.
“From being the AFP’s national priority area six (6) years ago due to the heavy density of enemy presence and activity here in Region 11, we have now become a center of excellence in combating insurgency,” Mempin said.
