Eastern Samar – Patay ang isang lider ng New People’s Army (NPA) sa engkwentro ng 78th Infantry Battalion sa Barangay San Gabriel, Borongan City, Eastern Samar noong Sabado, ika-6 ng Enero 2024.
Kinilala ng 8th Infantry Division ang mga nasawi na sina Martin Cardeño Colima, alyas “Moki/Maki/Seloy/Badong/Antos”, secretary ng Sub-Regional Committee-Sesame, Eastern Visayas Regional Party Committee (EVRPC).
Si Colima ang utak at isa sa mga salarin ng insidente ng pananambang sa kahabaan ng National Highway ng Brgy Libuton, Borongan City, Eastern Samar noong ika-13 ng Disyembre 2019, na ikinamatay ng isang pulis at 3 sibilyan, at ikinasugat ng hindi bababa sa 12 pang sibilyan, kabilang ang tatlong menor de edad, isa sa kanila ay isang taong gulang na sanggol.
“If the leadership of SRC Sesame, EVRPC only heeded the long-standing call of the local leaders of Eastern Samar for them to abandon their armed struggle and rejoin their families, this could not have happened. With the death of the top CPP-NPA leader in our area of responsibility, it is very imminent that fighters under SRC Sesame will lose direction, be demoralized, and be incapable of protracted fighting for a lost cause and incorrect communist ideology. The 802nd Infantry (PEERLESS) Brigade joins the local leaders, the Barangay Captains, Municipal and City Mayors, and the Governor of Samar and Eastern Samar provinces, along with other government agencies and Civil Society Organizations in the call for the remaining members of the NPA to abandon the armed struggle and return peacefully to their communities. Listen to the plea of your families and relatives to go home to them and live a life of peace, love, and happiness away from danger, fatigue, and hunger. The government with the help of civil society organizations is always ready to accept you, and provide necessary assistance to capacitate you as you start a new life in the mainstream Filipino society”, pahayag ni Brigadier General Noel A Vestuir, Commander, 802nd Infantry Brigade.