NOTE: THIS PRESS RELEASE WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE BOHOL CHRONICLE’S SUNDAY PRINT EDITION.
Where are we now? Has Bohol’s previous efforts been wasted?
Thus Rep. Erico Aristotle Aumentado lamented over the clash between the Philippine Army and the New People’s Army (NPA) early Tuesday morning in Barangay Cabacnitan, Bilar town.
The clash resulted in the deaths of five NPAs, wounding of one government trooper – now in a stable condition in one of the hospitals in Tagbilaran City – and retrieval of, among others, firearms, ammunitions and documents of high intelligence value.
In the province’s campaign for tourism – one of its two major economic drivers – this is “worst news”.
“To think that Bohol enjoys a sizable amount from the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) funds makes one wonder what went wrong,” the solon said.
Aumentado recalled that during the incumbency as governor of his namesake father and immediate congressional predecessor Erico Boyles Aumentado, Bohol was declared insurgency-free.
The senior Aumentado was at the helm of the province when he, the military, the civilian government and the church launched a two-pronged approach to win the decades-long insurgency problem.
The right-hand approach was the military-led combat, but the left-hand equally important approach was the civilian government-led livelihood support.
Bohol had improved a lot then, went on to become one of the country’s top tourism destinations after a guaranteed safe peace and order condition became a genuine attraction.
This drew several NPA combatants to surrender after realizing that they have been sweet-talked into joining the armed conflict with promises of land to till, medicines for the sick members of their respective families, even education of their children.
The biggest blow to the communist movement in Bohol was when NPA spokesman Silvino “Ka Bino” Clamucha was killed in combat with the Philippine Amy’s Special Forces (SF) troops in barangay Bagtic in Catigbian town.
A former rebel-turned Civilian Armed Force Geographical Unit (Cafgu) member admitted that he just turned a blind eye when he saw a former comrade in battle. The latter followed suit in surrendering to the government. He was reunited with his former comrade when he also joined the Cafgu. The 6th SF Battalion was then based in barangay Riverside, Bilar. (June Blanco)