Rebel leader surrenders

CAMP DIEGO SILANG, La Union, Philippines – A rebel leader surrendered to the police here on Tuesday.

Manuel Arpid, alias Ka Manuel, was the political affairs officer of the New People’s Army operating in the Ilocos and Cordillera regions, said Senior Superintendent Angelito Dumangeng, La Union police chief.

Arpid turned over an Armalite rifle. He said he decided to surrender because he felt he has not accomplished anything since he entered the movement in 1980.

Dumangeng gave assurance that rebel returnees would receive financial support through the Comprehensive Local Integration Program and other programs of the Departments of the Interior and Local Government and Social Welfare and Development.