By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The police have called on the New People’s Army (NPA) in Negros to “give peace a chance” following the death of Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP-NPA) founder Jose Maria “Joma” Sison in Utrecht, the Netherlands last week.

Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) spokesperson, Police Lt. Judesses Catalogo said Sison’s death will further degrade the NPA’s position and situation in Negros, which has already suffered immensely following a series of losses and the deaths of their high-ranking leaders.

Catalogo has again invited the NPA to surrender, pointing out that the government now has concrete programs which could help them live a peaceful and more prosperous life.

“It’s not too late yet, and aton message [sa ila], gaan naton sang ti-on nga maghari ang kalinong,” Catalogo said.

Meanwhile, he said the NOCPPO has also placed all police stations and units in the province on heightened alert as the CPP will celebrate its founding anniversary on December 26.

The spokesperson said the anniversary of the CPP is also the time when the NPA will show its force, and all police stations and police units in the province have been warned to keep on the lookout for possible attacks on government installations and atrocities against the local populace./DGB, WDJ