In a meeting with officers of the Philippine Army (PA) and Philippine Air Force (PAF), President Rodrigo Duterte lauded the troops for their successful operation against the New People’s Army (NPA).
“I’m not paying you. I know that you are not mercenaries. You do not do it for money. You do it out of passion for the love of country because we are all Filipinos,” he said in his speech.
This came after government troops successfully conducted military operations in Northern Luzon and Mindanao.
The president ordered the military and the police to neutralize the insurgents because of their alleged attacks on government forces amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) crisis.
To recall, on May 12, Duterte ordered the military to eliminate the communist insurgents if the rebels placed their lives in danger. A reward of PHP2-million was offered to anyone who could provide information for the capture and neutralization of top NPA commanders.
On May 4, Duterte dispelled all hopes for peace talks, rejecting anew the idea of a possible resumption of peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines’ (CPP) political wing, the National Democratic Front (NDF).
