Camp Allen, Baguio City , Philippines – Pangasinan, the province where the ragtag group led by then student activist Jose Maria Sison together with some 50 others met for the first time to establish the Communist Party of the Phillippines and the NPA, is now rebel free.
This, as the Northern Luzon Command of the Armed Forces will formally turn over the responsibility of maintaining peace in the province to the local government unit tomorrow.
Major Rosendo Armas, Nolcom spokesperson and concurrently the Civil Relations Service commander in Northern Luzon said they will be turning over lead role of internal security arrangements to the provincial government because the province have been freed from any influence by the CPP-NPA.
The formal turnover tomorrow will be attended by both government and military officials and other peace and order stakeholders in the province.
Pangasinan is indeed now insurgency-free, according to the top police and Army officers in a briefing made with Gov. Amado Espino Jr.
Senior Superintendent Percival Barba, police provincial director and Philippine Army Brigade Commander Leonido Bongcawil revealed this during the presentation of Internal Security Operations to Espino and Joint Declaration of Insurgency Free Province held at the Capitol conference room in Pangasinan.
The briefing was aimed to determine the status of peace and order in the province of Pangasinan focusing on insurgency covering the period from 2006 to date.
Espino, chair of the Provincial Peace and Order Council, has put peace and order as his administration’s priority thrusts to safeguard the people from lawless elements and threat of insurgency.
Espino was a retired police colonel and served as provincial commander of Pangasinan and regional commander of Region 1.
The provincial government under Espino’s stewardship has maintained close collaboration with the provincial Philippine National Police (PNP) command and the Army contingents within the province to ensure the safety of the people as well as visitors.
Pangasinan was then considered as the “shirking area” where communist terrorists seek temporary refuge whenever massive combat operations were being undertaken by military forces.