The militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) chided the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) for issuing conflicting intelligence assessments on the strength of the New People’s Army (NPA). A PNP official even said that the military establishment is too alarmist. According to Danilo “Ka Daning” Ramos, secretary general of the group, “they gets billions of pesos for their intelligence funds and yet they cannot even coordinate properly among themselves. They are really wasting the people’s money, which should be allotted for basic services like health and education,”

“ISAFP operatives even pass off as intelligence work, cut and pasted websites of militant organizations, even an elementary student can do that. In their vain endeavor to demonize progressive militant organizations, they are twisting the truth and churning out lies,” added the peasant leader.

“As their so called top secret military intelligence briefing presentation “Knowing the Enemy” would attest they are now planning to step up attacks on peasant organizations, indigenous people’s groups and militant party-lists, because in military parlance to neutralize means liquidation. This information in contained on the power point presentation itself as well as on the manuscript explaining the presentation from page 23-31,” explained Ramos.

“If anything untoward happens to members and leaders of our organization then we have no one to blame but the AFP as well as the PNP, who works with them in these operations. In fact another Bayan Muna coordinator Alden “Boy” Ambida, was shot last weekend in Borongan, Samar,” warned Ramos.

As for his part Carl Anthony Ala, public information officer of the group, “the military should also explain what it meant when it said that the Triad Salipud team in Mindanao, particularly the 73th IB was successful in countering dissent by the liquidation of IP leaders, and psychological operations. This just goes to show their methods and it seems that they are now applying this nationwide,”

“We are challenging the Macapagal-Arroyo administration to issue a  categorical statement condemning the “Knowing the Enemy” CD as well as the killing of activists,” ended Ala. # # #
 

KMP - 11 April 2005