Why are we still having that stupid truce?

Last Sunday the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) proudly celebrated its 42nd Founding Anniversary by holding a parade in Surigao del Sur marching proudly of their “impending” victory over our weak leadership under Pres. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, who recently agreed to sign a Christmas truce with the Communists, which they exploited to the hilt.

Let me reiterate that on Dec.14th, two days before the truce would have taken effect, 10 soldiers and a nine-year-old boy were ambushed and killed by elements of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Samar. Unfortunately for the families of those dead soldiers and the nine-year-old boy, Pres. Aquino only gave them his “sympathies” and issued a statement that the Philippine government would keep the truce, even though we know too well that the Philippine Army was “taken for a ride” (na isahan) by the NPAs.

If I was the President, I would have suspended that Christmas truce in the whole of Samar and sent a tracking force that would hunt and capture or kill those treacherous NPAs. But alas, we have a weak President. He may love shooting firearms, but he is weak inside. So the Communists had the last laugh and the military is saddened by all this.

Meanwhile, the headline of The Philippine Star yesterday said it all: “Truce Broken in Mindoro”. But don’t forget that the CPP/NDF/NPAs have friends in the media who would pin the blame on the military. This time, the spokesman for the 2nd Infantry Division, 1st Lt. Frank Sayson said that the rebels ambushed the soldiers in San Jose, Mindoro who were supposed to meet with them in the guise that they wanted to surrender. The keyword is deception, something that the communists cleverly use; unfortunately, it is the unwary soldiers who get caught in their yarn. Again, if I were the President, I would immediately suspend the truce in Mindoro. But alas, I’m not the President. I’m just too strong willed!

There is no doubt that there are areas in this country that the NPA reign supreme and they are mostly in Quezon Province, Samar, Mindoro and parts of Mindanao. To think in the other areas, we have the Muslim insurgency! Alas, it is under an Aquino led government that the communists always gains their strength, because naiveté is part and parcel of the Aquino DNA. Remember, Tita Cory released CPP Chairman Jose Maria “Joma” Sison without asking anything in return and he returned the favor against Tita Cory by giving her problems in Hacienda Luisita. Now it is the turn of the son, Pres. PNoy Aquino to play patsy with the communists. And even before the truce begun, the NPAs already ambushed our soldiers.

Now the NPAs broke the Christmas truce in Mindoro, which makes us ask the question, “Why are we still having this stupid truce with the communists when the Philippine government is at the losing end?” If Pres. PNoy wants to salvage the honor and dignity of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) he should immediately stop this truce with the communists and start military operations especially in the areas where the NPAs ambushed our soldiers. I just hope that P.Noy would wake up to the reality that the Christmas truce was all a communist farce!

Sure, let the Communist resume formal talks in Oslo, Norway come Feb.15-21, but we should caution Pres. Noy that he should never allow the Philippine government to be on the peace talks based on a position of weakness because the Communists would exploit that weakness to the hilt, especially that they have a well-oiled propaganda machinery which includes our mainstream newspapers and journalists. If we are not prepared to face the communists, then we should not sit down with them.

In my book, there is really no common ground for the Philippine government to sit down with the communists simply because their main objective is to strangle the countryside into submission and form a communist government, something that the great majority of Filipinos oppose. Of course, there’s the option of “power sharing” which I’m sure Joma would just love to push. But how can P.Noy push for that? Make Joma a Cabinet Secretary when he revamps the cabinet next year? I doubt it.

I’d like to point out that if the Aquino administration continues with their present path, it would further weaken the AFP. The release of the so-called “Morong 43” despite the reality that 5 of them admitted to be card-carrying members of the NPA sends wrong and confusing signals to the ordinary soldier, that they have a Commander-in-Chief who coddles their sworn enemy. If that ordinary soldier thinks further that the Oakwood mutineers and the Trillanes gang were released by P.Noy, what do you think would this ordinary soldier be thinking of next? Your guess please!

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