TUGUEGARAO CITY, CAGAYAN – The Regional Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-ELCAC) Region 2 conducted the Provincial Leveling Session for all barangays in the province of Cagayan on May 25, 2021 via Zoom. This endeavor aimed to orient barangay officials on Executive Order No. 70 which institutionalizes the Whole-of-Nation approach in attaining inclusive and sustainable peace.

DOLE Region 02 Regional Director Joel M. Gonzales emphasized in his message the importance of cascading to the barangays the EO 70-Knowing the Enemy (KTE) Framework for them to better understand how the Communist Terrorist Groups (CTGs) operate. Moreover, he urged all partner agencies to work hand-in-hand and strengthen their partnerships and promote projects that are visible and measurable. He then challenged the barangays to identify possible projects that would be helpful and beneficial for their development.

During the discussion proper, representatives from the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), and Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) presented relevant topics namely 1) the extent of CPP-NDF-NPA infiltration of the Bureaucracy; 2) General Orientation on CTG Problem, its Framework and how they operate; 3) the twelve (12) clusters/line of efforts under the NTF-ELCAC; 4) the Support to Barangay Development Program (SBDP); 5) Rights of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) in relation to SBDP Implementation; and 6) Ways Forward thru the Sectoral Mobilization Cluster.

The activity concluded with a message from the Cabinet Officer for Regional Development and Security (CORDS), DOLE Sec. Silvestre Bello III, in which he expressed his hope and expectation that the participants already learned the history and background of the CTGs. He also underscored that the barangay, despite being the smallest administrative division and basic political unit, plays a vital role in addressing the 52-year long problem of insurgency. He further assured everyone that there will be an allotted budget for the program that will eventually put an end to the years-long communist armed conflict, thus, attaining inclusive and sustainable peace which would be one of the legacies of the Duterte administration. (SOURCE: LGOO II JOHN PAUL V. GO)