TACLOBAN CITY – The mayor of the remote town of Matuguinao, Samar has called on critics to look into the plight of villagers in provinces affected by armed struggle before maligning the proposed Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020.
Mayor Aran Boller said in a phone interview on Tuesday that families in far-flung communities, who have been suffering from terroristic activities of the New People’s Army (NPA), stand to benefit from the passage of House Bill 6875.
“People who are against the bill do not know the real situation on the ground. Protesters have never experienced what the people here have gone through because of illegal activities of NPA rebels in our town,” Boller told the Philippine News Agency (PNA).
The mayor recalled that several residents have been victims of extortion, recruitment of minors, indoctrination, deprived of basic education, and distracted economic activities due to the presence of rebels.
In the past, the NPA launched several attacks against government forces, displacing hundreds of families.
He appealed to critics to stop spreading false information that the bill seeks to silence critics since there are existing laws that protect those expressing dissent against the government and conducting peaceful demonstrations.
On June 8, he issued a statement to the National Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict in response to protests against the passage of the bill.
“I was compelled to issue the statement after I heard that some member of the House of Representatives withdrew their support to the passage of the bill due to pressures from those against the bill. Why we should be scared? We are the legitimate government,” the mayor added.
For several decades, Matuguinao has been known as a hotbed of NPA fighters due to its poor road access. It was only in 2018 when the town got connected to Samar’s main highway after the completion of 21-kilometer Gandara-Matuguinao Road funded by the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process’ Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (Pamana).
Of the 20 villages, five far-flung areas are still threatened by sightings of about 20 NPA fighters crossing the boundaries of Samar and Northern Samar provinces.
Ending insurgency has been the priority of the local government as they believe that armed struggle hampered the town’s economic development for decades.
Since the launch of its strong campaign against insurgents, 33 active NPA fighters and 96 die-hard supporters from Matuguinao town have surrendered to the local government and the Philippine Army, Boller said.
The mayor said the passage of the enactment of the landmark legislation that seeks to prevent, prohibit and penalize terrorism, is a big boost to their campaign against insurgency.
The bill introduces provisions imposing life imprisonment without parole on those who will participate in the planning, training, preparation, and facilitation of a terrorist act; possess objects connected with the preparation for the commission of terrorism; or collect or make documents connected with the preparation of terrorism.
Under the bill, any person who will threaten to commit terrorism will suffer the penalty of 12 years. The same jail term will be meted against those who will propose any terroristic acts or incite others to commit terrorism.
Any person who will voluntarily and knowingly join any organization, association, or group of persons knowing that such is a terrorist organization, will suffer imprisonment of 12 years.
Under the bill, the number of days a suspected person can be detained without a warrant of arrest is 14 calendar days, extendable by 10 days.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)

Move meant to contain spread of virus

TACLOBAN CITY- The mayor of San Isidro in Northern Samar has placed under lockdown a village where the town’s first cases of COVID-19 resides.
Mayor Ferdinand Avila said that he placed Barangay Mabuhay under lockdown to ensure that the virus would not spread.
The town of San Isidro logged its first COVID-19 cases involving six returning locally stranded individuals on May 28.
“I have already placed under lockdown the entire barangay of Mabuhay to ensure that the virus would not spread and for purposes of contact tracing. But they are all asymptomatic,” Avila said.
He said that the six were part of the 19 construction workers who returned to San Isidro on May 28 and who were stranded in Metro Manila after the metropolis was placed under lockdown last March.
The swab results of these returning construction workers were released on Wednesday (June 9).
Mayor Avila said that the local government unit will be providing food assistance to the more than 800 residents of Mabuhay, located just outside the town center.
He admitted that the people of San Isidro, with a population of more than 27,000 spread on its 14 barangays, went into panic when they learned of COVID-19 cases on their town.
But the town mayor assured them that the concerned individuals could not infect others as they are now in isolation facility.
“I have also made a request before the Regional and Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force to place our town under general community quarantine and enhanced community quarantine for Mabuhay,” the town mayor said.
The six men from San Isidro were among the 19 people reported by the Department of Health in the region to have been infected with the virus.
DOH said that the 19 confirmed cases was the highest number of COVID-19 cases reported on a single day.
Aside from the six men from San Isidro, the new cases were from Baybay City with six; five in Ormoc City; and one each from Pastrana and Calubian, both in Leyte.
Of these areas, San Isidro, Pastrana and Calubian posted their first cases of COVID-19 while Baybay City has now eight and Ormoc has six.
All of these cases involved individuals who returned to their respective places under the ‘Balik Probinsiya’ program of the national government. (ROEL T. AMAZONA with reports from JOEY A. GABIETA)