Missed golden opportunity

WITH PRESIDENT Duterte, as the leader and father of our nation, a lot of hope burns in my heart. His bravery, determination and his strong will to end insurgency in our country by, for example, giving the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) a fair chance to take a shot at peace, so to speak, are what our nation needs.

President Duterte declared unilaterally a ceasefire during his first State of the Nation Address (Sona). This would bring us closer to unifying our country for peace, so we thought. In fact, the President ordered all government troops to immediately implement the ceasefire even as he was still delivering the Sona. Obviously, they do not want to continue fighting against our “kapwa Pilipino.”

Unfortunately, the CPP-NPA imposed so many conditions. And days after the President’s unilateral declaration of the ceasefire, elements of the NPA ambushed government militiamen in Davao del Norte, leaving one of them dead and four wounded.

The ambush tells us that the CPP-NPA does not want peace. The CPP-NPA and its leaders do not want us Filipinos to live peacefully. They are not serious about resuming peace negotiations with the government. They want to undermine the leadership of the President.

The CPP-NPA is deceiving us. Its leaders say they are for the people’s welfare, then why did the NPA attack government troops who were under a ceasefire order? Why didn’t the CPP-NPA reciprocate with a ceasefire of its own? The CPP-NPA’s refusal to do so clearly subverts the people’s welfare and is, as clearly, treachery of the basest form. The government listens to the CPP-NPA’s demands and, precisely, declared a ceasefire to show that we want peace for our country, as the CPP-NPA avers. But what did these communists do instead?

The CPP-NPA, and especially its leaders, disappoint us. How can we believe them again? They are no different from drug addicts who would do everything to push their personal and political interests, never mind if they destroyed the future of our country, particularly that of young Filipinos.

All I can say now is, the CPP-NPA missed a good and promising opportunity. It missed a golden opportunity to save our nation from a violent, bloody war and to help its members’ own families to live or get back to a normal life. It missed a chance that may change our view of the group. Its members missed a chance to make the lives of their loved ones better.

—KRISTABELLE F. LLANOS, [email protected]