PNP, AFP intensify partnership in battling insurgency, terrorism

The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Wednesday strengthened its partnership in eradicating communist insurgency and terrorism in the country. 

At the National Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Center (JPSCC) meeting in Camp Crame on Wednesday, PNP chief Police General Camilo Pancratius Cascolan and AFP chief General Gilbert Gapay led the signing of Joint Letter Directive No. 03 series of 2020 or "Guidelines in Evaluating the Effectiveness of Internal Security Operations in Support to the National Thrust to End Local Communist Armed Conflict." 

Cascolan said the essence of the JPSCC meeting was to intensify the rapport of the PNP and AFP as the police support anti-insurgency and anti-terrorism operations, particularly in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region. 

"Basically this is evaluating the security operations. We need to have other contingency plans and that's well said by our Chief of Staff, it's forging our partnership with the PNP and AFP," Cascolan said at a press briefing. 

"In [doing so,] we will be able to come up with innovations so that we would be able to muster actually our initiatives and come out with the best results which is zero insurgency," he added. 

Cascolan reiterated that there would be focused units against counter-insurgency in various communities, which will be led by the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations. 

"They will be going down... be very visible in all the insurgency areas and be able to come up with what you call the area public safety battalions," Cascolan said. 

Gapay, for his part, said the police and the military have a joint campaign plan in their efforts to address various security threats. The security forces are aiming to end local terrorists as well as communist rebels before President Rodrigo Duterte steps down from presidency. 

"Usually we do things jointly and ngayon... we are here to review, evaluate to strengthen the partnership and improve the plan which we have so that we would beat the deadline set by our President, which is to end all these local armed conflict posed by the CPP-NPA and the local terrorist groups before his term ends in 2022," Gapay explained. 

Gapay said other agencies and even the public have a vital role in ending lawless groups in the country. 

"It involves everyone, all other government agencies, sectors of society and the people or citizenry as a whole kaya itong campaign plan namin is being updated," Gapay said. 

"It also integrates roles ng different government agencies, other sectors of society to address not only the armed component but most especially the root causes of insurgency," he added. —KG, GMA News