Rizal Rep. Fidel Nograles, chair of the House of Representatives Committee on Labor and Employment emphasized the need for the government to help ex-rebels find a decent means of livelihood to discourage them from again taking up arms against the state.
This, as the National Amnesty Commission (NAC) recently said it estimates about 100,000 former rebels would avail of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s amnesty program.
The bulk of amnesty applicants are expected to come from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), NAC Commissioner Nasser Marohomsalic said.
“We have to provide ample support to those granted amnesty so they can return to their families and communities with renewed hope,” Nograles said.
The lawmaker had earlier lauded the Department of Labor and Employment for providing employment assistance to around 10,000 ex-rebels through its “Tulong Panghanapbuhay Para sa ating mga Disadvantage Workers” (TUPAD) program.
He said that a stable means of livelihood would dissuade former rebels from returning to insurgency.
Nograles also noted that the great number of expected applicants for amnesty is a signal that the people are appreciating the government’s efforts to provide a better way of life for them.
“So we must continue to work hard to boost agriculture and lower the price of basic commodities, especially food, improve the quality of education and healthcare, and create jobs so that we can completely quell the insurgency in our country,” Nograles said.
Mr. Marcos has issued several proclamations granting amnesty to members of the MILF, MNLF, and Rebolusyunaryong Partido ng Manggagawa ng Pilipinas / Revolutionary Proletarian Army / Alex Boncayao Brigade (RPMP-RPA-ABB), as well as former members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) and their front organizations.
The NAC, meanwhile, has released the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for Amnesty Proclamations 403, 404, 405, and 406 this month.