NTF-ELCAC slams Gabriela Partylist’s desperate, opportunistic politicking

March 16, 2025

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) strongly condemns the blatant opportunism of Gabriela Women’s Partylist Representative Arlene Brosas, who has chosen to exploit the current political climate following the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Rep. Brosas’ attempt to drag NTF-ELCAC into the fray is a desperate political grandstanding meant to milk the seeming division among the Filipino people.

While it is true that NTF-ELCAC was established under Executive Order No. 70 during President Duterte’s administration, its mandate has always been to eradicate the communist insurgency through a whole-of-nation approach. To reduce the task force’s purpose to mere political affiliation is an insult to all stakeholders—especially President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who, as the the Chairman of the Task Force, continues to recognize and support the vital work of NTF-ELCAC in securing peace and development for the nation.

Rep. Brosas’ call to abolish the NTF-ELCAC not only disregards the government’s counter-insurgency efforts—one that she is a part of, lest she forgets—but also reveals her ignorance of the task force's role. NTF-ELCAC’s budget, as reflected in its work, is not a tool for suppression but is directed toward socio-economic programs that address the root causes of armed conflict. These include infrastructure development, livelihood initiatives, and other essential community projects that uplift the lives of Filipinos, particularly in geograhically-isolated and disadvantaged areas. In parroting the CPP-NPA-NDF's line of dismissing these programs, Rep. Brosas and her allies are evidently proving themselves to be anti-development and anti-people, much like the communist terrorist group.

Rep. Brosas and frankly the rest of the Makabayan bloc's hypocrisy is glaring. They claim to advocate for progress, yet seek to drag the country back to a time when counter-insurgency was purely a military matter, instead of employing a whole-of-nation approach that integrates good governance, social services, and culture of security.

They repeatedly call for accountability from the government while turning a blind eye to the crimes committed by their own. If Rep. Brosas is truly committed to justice, she would do well to demand accountability from her kumare, ACT Partylist Rep. France Castro, who has been convicted of child abuse, not by a foreign court, but by our own justice system.

If Rep. Brosas truly wishes to dismantle a so-called “tool for widespread abuse, suppression, and violation of human rights,” she must first acknowledge and denounce the CPP-NPA-NDF's exploitation of indigenous communities, farmers, workers, youth, and children—many of whom have been groomed and recruited into their armed rebellion. In ignoring this truth, Rep. Brosas is shielding the real perpetrators of violence and oppression.

Finally, the NTF-ELCAC stands by the truth and supports those who expose the ties that bind Makabayan-affiliated groups, including Rep. Brosas' partylist, to the violence of the CPP-NPA-NDF. The forces responsible for decades of bloodshed and suffering in our country are now in free-fall to oblivion, and the likes of Rep. Brosas is trying desperately to defy gravity. In the midst of the ongoing political turmoil, clearly it is the communist terrorist movement that stands to gain from this instability. We shall not afford them the opportunity to recover. We will remain vigilant.

Undersecretary Ernesto C Torres Jr

Executive Director

NTF ELCAC