A lot can happen in a month. One month, you’re vowing support for the president’s pet project. The next month, you’re declaring this project as “anti-people” and “anti-democratic.”
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), led by Jose Maria “Joma” Sison, announced that they will no longer be a part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s controversial war on illegal drugs in the country.
Last month, the CPP-NPA took on Duterte’s challenge and pledged “to carry out operations to disarm and arrest the chieftains of the biggest drug syndicates, as well as other criminal syndicates involved in human rights violations and destruction of the environment.”
That was the case until Aug 12, Fri.
“The anti-drug war of the Duterte regime has rapidly spiralled into a frenzied campaign of extrajudicial killings and vigilante murders perpetrated by the police and by police-linked criminal syndicates,” the CPP said in the statement released Friday.
The CPP pointed out, “human rights are being violated with impunity by police personnel, emboldened by Duterte’s assurances of ‘I got your back’ and his public declarations of contempt against human rights.”
“In line with standing orders, the New People’s Army (NPA) will continue to intensify its operations to arrest and disarm drug trade operators and protectors. However, these will no longer be considered as cooperative with the Duterte regime’s undemocratic and anti-people ‘war on drugs,'”
The NPA is the CPP’s armed wing.
Just a few weeks ago, Sison and Duterte — who used to be all chummy with each other — exchanged choice words after the CPP snubbed Duterte’s ultimatum regarding the military altercation in Compostela Valley, which left one dead and four wounded.
The CPP had more to say about the Commander-in-chief.
“Duterte has become so full of himself and intoxicated with the vast power he is not used to handle that he thinks he can get away with upturning the criminal judicial system and denouncing people for defending human rights,” the statement reads, adding that Duterte made himself the laughing stock of legal circles.
“He, however, is not laughing and threatens anyone who chooses to stand in his way,” the CPP said.
And they did say what some of us are thinking.
“Duterte’s ‘drug war’ is bound to fail because it does not address the socio-economic roots of the problem.”
