80 former rebels get Negros Occ LGU aid

BACOLOD CITY — The repeated calls, for eight years now, of Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr. for communist rebels in Negros Occidental to abandon their armed struggle and live a normal life with their respective families may have positive results after all.

Marañon, who spoke Friday at the centennial celebration of La Castellana as a municipality in Negros Occidental, reported that 80 former New People’s Army rebels, who responded to his call, are now enjoying the assistance extended them by the provincial government, on top of the assistance from the national government through its Comprehensive Local Integration Program (CLIP).

The governor said that, last week, eight former rebels in Negros Occidental received livelihood assistance of P50,000 each, on top of the P20,000 financial assistance they initially received from the Department of Interior and Local Government.

The new leadership of the Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division earlier enjoined local government units in Western and Central Visayas regions to pursue localized peace talks, following the collapsed of the peace talks between the national government and the National Democratic Front.

Admitting that he sounded like a broken record, Marañon challenged those who are still fighting against the government to come down from the mountains, and work with them.

“Our objectives and your objectives are the same, which is to uplift the lives of the people and develop the province,” he stressed. “Let's not fight against each other,” he said.

The provincial government of Negros Occidental has been a recipient of a “Bayanihan Award” from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, in recognition of Marañon’s unwavering support to the peace and development of the Philippine Army in Negros.

In an interview with former rebels, Marañon said he was told that they were deceived by their leaders to join the armed struggle. He also enjoined LGUs to help him convince those in the mountains, who are still fighting against the government, to live a normal life. “Let’s talk the problem over peacefully,” he added.

Mayor Rhumyla NicorMangilimutan, for her part, said that not a single insurgencyrelated incident took place in La Castellana, in more than 18 months of her service as the town mayor.