PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has signed an order creating a national task force that will focus on localized peace processes to end the 50-year old communist armed conflict in the country.
Executive Order No. 70, signed on Dec. 4, institutionalizes the “whole-of-nation” approach in attaining inclusive and sustainable peace and directs the adoption of a national peace framework.
The whole-of-nation approach brings together government agencies, local government units, and civil society to address “the root causes of insurgencies, internal disturbances and tensions, and other armed conflicts and threats by prioritizing and harmonizing the delivery of basic services and social development packages by the government.”
The Task Force will be composed of the President as chair and the National Security Adviser as vice-chair. Most of the departments will be represented along with two private sector representatives who will be appointed by the President upon the group’s recommendation.
The Task Force is expected to formulate the policies for the peace strategy and implement these in coordination with relevant national government agencies, local government units (LGUs), civil society groups, and other stakeholders.
Funding requirements, based on the EO, will be charged against the existing appropriations of member-agencies of the Task Force and such other appropriate funding sources as the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) may identify, and when necessary, the Contingent Fund, subject to relevant laws, rules and regulations.
Mr. Duterte cancelled the peace talks last year with the communist umbrella group National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), citing their refusal to first sign a ceasefire agreement.
Various LGUs have since expressed support for localized peace talks and have been pursuing the surrender of NPA members, who are the ones fighting on the ground.
Armed Forces of the Philippines Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Edgard A. Arevalo said this new directive practically cuts out the NDFP in the peace process.
“Kailangan pa ba ang (Do we still need the) NDFP? Hindi na sila kailangan d‘yan (Not anymore),” Mr. Arevalo said in a phone interview yesterday.
He added that with the new strategy, the government is aiming to end the communist insurgency by 2019.
Also on Monday, the Palace released a copy of EO No. 69 that grants financial support to the citizen armed force geographical unit (CAFGU) active auxiliary service.
The CAFGU, which was created through the EO No. 264 (S. 1987), complements and supports the regular forces of the military in dealing with internal and external security threats.
Mr. Arevalo explained that CAFGU members have only been receiving a “subsistence allowance” of P160 per day.
Meanwhile, the Department of National Defense said it has been supporting localized peace talks, recognizing that local officials know and understand better the people and the situation in their respective areas.
“In fact, we encourage localized peace talks… (the) local chief executives mas alam nila kasi ‘yung (they know better their) constituents,” said DND Undersecretary for Civil, Veterans, and Retiree Affairs Reynaldo B. Mapagu during the launching of the Task Force Balik-Loob Christmas Campaign on Monday, Dec. 10.
Last year, various government agencies, including the DND, partnered for the implementation of the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) in pursuant to Administrative Order No. 10 signed by the President.
With the help of E-CLIP, which is led by the provincial governors, Mr. Mapagu said localized peace talks resulted to the surrender of NPA members.
Data from Task Force Balik-Loob indicates a total of 8,344 surrenderees, mostly coming from the areas under the military’s Eastern Mindanao Command.
CPP leader Jose Maria C. Sison, who has been exiled in the Netherlands, and NDF National Executive Committee member Luis G. Jalandoni were sought for comment on the new order, but have yet to respond as of press time. — Arjay L. Balinbin and Vince Angelo C. Ferreras

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