The communist insurgency in the country is dismissed by Malacañang as a “failed rebellion” on Wednesday, December 26, as the the rebel group celebrated its 50th founding anniversary.
The statement was made by presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo who criticized leader Jose Maria “Joma” Sison’s previous comment about the Philippines’ deterioration under President Rodrigo Duterte.
“The 50 years of Joma Sison’s rebellion speaks for itself. It’s a failed rebellion,” said Panelo in a statement.
“It only resulted in loss of lives of Filipinos, specially the numerous young students who were killed in battles, skirmishes, and battled sickness in the hills, who could have served their country well in peaceful and productive means, as well as destruction of properties,” Panelo added.
According to him, the rebel returnees were “coming in droves, responding to the call of the government to return to the fold of the law, while Sison remains ensconced in his ivory tower of comfort and luxury while his comrades die for a lost cause.”
Sison is founding chair of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). He has has been in exile at the Netherlands after peace talks with government failed in 1987.
“No wonder the forces on the ground no longer follow him hence his regular rants against PRRD (Duterte) to give himself the appearance of relevance,” Panelo said.
“It’s time for him to wave the white flag before his physique gives up on him. There is honor in returning back to a democratic society and embracing the constitutional order,” he added.
Previously, Sison said that the communist movement remained relevant, leading “a vibrant revolution” 50 years after it was founded.
Sison, in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel on Wednesday, also said that that Duterte was a “modern maniac in power trying to put on a national scale [for] his bloodthirsty kind of character.”
