PRESIDENT Duterte gave a P9-million reward to military units in eastern Mindanao for successful operations that led to the killing of several leaders of the New People’s Army, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines.
The reward was handed over by Armed Forces chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana and Lt. Gen. Greg Almerol, chief of the AFP Eastern Mindanao Command, to the units in Camp Panacan in Davao City on Tuesday.
Sobejana said he was instructed by the President to personally hand over the reward to the units and convey the latter’s message to the troops.
“Our President really monitors what we are doing. In fact, I heard from him the units that made a difference and contributed more towards the attainment of sustainable peace and development shall be recognized,” said Sobejana.
Almerol thanked the military units for their hard work that led to the neutralization of the rebel leaders.
The units were given the reward for the killing of NPA leaders Marcelino Navarro, Manuel Magante, Romeo Lendio Libron, Rogelio Masaya Udal, Zaldy Gulmatico Pulido and Danny Huit in separate military operations in eastern Mindanao since last year.
Last month, Sobejana also handed over a P2-million reward from the President to military units in Tawi-Tawi for the rescue of four Indonesian kidnap victims, arrest of two Abu Sayyaf sub-leaders, and killing of another sub-leader and two Abu Sayyaf men last March.
In November last year, President Duterte personally handed over an unspecified amount of “cash incentive” to military units in Sulu for the killing of seven Abu Sayyaf members in an encounter off Parang town that month.
