TARLAC CITY — Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM) and the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations Northern Luzon (DIPO-NL) signed Tuesday a plan that will solidify their partnership in ending local communist armed conflict in Regions 1,2,3 and Cordillera.
Joint Campaign Plan “Natalna II” is designed to ensure synergy of military and police efforts in addressing the New People’s Army, criminal elements and private armed groups through close cooperation and inter-operability schemes.
“Addressing operational gaps through the creation of additional clusters under the Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Committee is among the objectives of this joint campaign plan since such is critical to the government security forces’ ability to defeat insurgency as well as in maintaining peace and order in our communities,” NOLCOM Commander Lt.Gen. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr. said.
“Fostering harmonious working relationship with the Philippine National Police (PNP) is one of NOLCOM’s operational thrusts. After all, we are serving the same country under the same flag for the same people towards the attainment of the same objective,” he added.
For his part, DIPO-NL Director PMGen. Ferdinand Daway said that through this endeavor, the AFP and PNP iron-clad partnership is being formalized from the area level down to the grassroots.
“This will be the game changer in our quest for a safe and terror-free society,” Daway stressed.
“We reaffirm our commitment to President Duterte’s order for the AFP and the PNP to complement each other’s efforts being one of the prime movers of the different task forces to end local communist armed conflict,” he added.
AFP and PNP are co-lead agencies of the Peace, Law Enforcement and Development Support Cluster, one of the 12 lines of efforts of Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict at the national, regional, provincial, city and municipal levels.
Present during the signing were the different AFP Joint Task Force Commanders and Police Regional Directors in the area.