Without prejudice to findings of a formal investigation that may be contrary to the Philippine National Police’s version of the Negros Oriental operations, all peace-loving Filipinos should support our police and Armed Forces of the Philippines personnel for risking their lives to keep our communities safe and secure from bad elements, instead of condemning them only because highly partisan and organized leftist groups are busy with their usual propaganda efforts to harass our troops from sustaining their anti-insurgency and anti-criminality campaign.

When farmers possess rifle grenades, fragmentation grenades, handguns, shotguns, ammunition, phones and subversive documents, it says a lot about their tactics in their insurgency campaign aimed at a protracted guerrilla warfare aimed at overthrowing the duly constituted authority.

I urge the Department of Interior and Local Government and Department of National Defense to provide all the necessary legal and other forms of assistance to our troops and not make them feel abandoned. Now, more than anytime, they should be assisted by their superior officers until and unless it is proven that they violated the established rules of engagement and the existing laws of the land.

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