Bacolod City – Maj. Gen. Marion Sison, commanding general of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division, has called on all security agencies to remain on guard, amid declaration of Bacolod City as “insurgency-free”, in order to deny the New People’s Army from operating again in the highly urbanized city.
“Our competence as stewards of this region will be reflected by the performance of our respective units. It shall be manifested on how the communities we are protecting trust us,” Sison said in a statement issued by the 3ID Public Affairs Office.
On May 19, the Regional Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Center concurred the approval of Bacolod City as “insurgency free” by the City Peace and Order Council.
Sison reminded the security sector that “our success shall be measured when the people we are serving grow and expand their skills, boosting productivity and economic progress under the bedrock of reliable regional security.”
In 2019, the Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod declared the CPP-NPA-NDF as Persona Non-Grata.
In a resolution approved by the RJPSCC resolution, it stressed the need for continuous collaboration among the security forces and the community to prevent the resurgence of any rebel -affiliated sectoral groups, and to deter terrorism and other organized crime activities in Bacolod City.
Brig. Gen. Orlando Edralin, 303rd Infantry Brigade commander, who represented Sison in the activity, described the insurgency-free declaration as a milestone in the sincerity of the people to create an environment suitable for peace and development.
“Without the active participation of the people in the quest to have an insurgency-free community, this breakthrough would not be possible”, Edralin said. (Gilbert Bayoran via The Visayan Daily Star (TVDS), photo courtesy of TVDS)
