The Sangguniang Bayan of Magpet in North Cotabato recently approved Resolution No. 1 series of 2017 filed by the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council declaring the town under state of calamity.
The declaration was made after elements of the New People’s Army disarmed Mahongkog village chair Michael Lingaro and members of the Barangay Peace- keeping Action Team on April 9 and had an encounter with government forces in Barangay Balete the following day.
Magpet Vice- Mayor Rogelio Marañon said that the 30 percent of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund will be utilized for the relief distribution and medical outreach for at least 60 households affected by the incident.
“The fund will also be used for rice distribution as well as for stress debriefing,” Marañon noted adding that the LDRRM team will immediately deliver the aid once they get clearance from the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
At present, the vice- mayor stated that there is an on- going clearing operation in the affected villages of the town.
Meanwhile, 39th Infantry Battalion commander Lt. Col. Harold Argamosa said that in coordination with the Philippine National Police, they are monitoring NPA recruitment in Magpet particularly in the villages of Balete and Temporan.
In an encounter on April 10, two NPA members were killed and one of them is alyas Adong, a 19- year old member of the Guerilla Front 53.
Argamosa emphasized that the NPA recruitment is a clear violation of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law and the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act as most of the recruits are indigenous youth. (SJDuerme-PIA12)
