CPLA threats of war are childish tantrums

October 14, 2004

The repeated threats of the Sawatang faction of the Cordillera People’s Liberation Army (CPLA) to wage war against the government after returning the Mt. Data “sipat” to Malacañang are like tantrums thrown by a child after being deprived of candies.

Unable to find decent jobs either in the public or private sector, members of this CPLA faction hope to “liberate” themselves from the dire impact of unemployment by seeking integration into the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and get regularly paid. Failing to get that, they will create trouble in the hinterlands to get attention from the government until such time they are promised that they will get their “candies”, so they, like spoiled brats, will stop their tantrums.

This is actually the game plan hatched by some meddling bureaucrats who, together with Sawatang and other CPLA “commanders” are behind this latest threat of “waging war” against the government. They have no real intention of fighting the military, since the AFP is there coddler in its anti-insurgency campaign in the Cordillera. All they really want us government attention and some employment even only as members of the Civilian Armed Force Geographic Unit (CAFGU), because they are running out of pocket money for their syndicated crimes. As for their bureaucrat handler, he wants some security of tenure because he is threatened of being “re-organized” into unemployment.

To prove that they are still worthy of government’s attention, members of this CPLA faction could resort to kill a member of a people’s organization or an NGO, like what their founding leaders did to ingratiate themselves with the military and update their bloody credentials.

Meanwhile, they continue to propagate their bastardized notions of “sipat” and “gopas” so the unsuspecting public will not doubt their Cordillera credentials.

This bunch of unemployed paramilitary group should have been prosecuted and disbanded by the government a long time ago for their criminal activities. But since the AFP still has some use for them in its anti-insurgency campaign, it was just allowed to hibernate. But there is no need to worry. As soon as the AFP is able to locate and recover the millions plundered by some of its top generals from government coffers, it will throw some bones and morsels into the way of this CPLA faction.

Then, everybody will be happy and there will be no more talk of “waging war” against Malacañang. #

Reference:
Windel Bolinget
Secretary General