Metro Manila military, police beef up community support program for peace, development

Police and military officers hold a 7-day Joint NCRPO –JTFNCR Community Support Program sessions to drumbeat peace and development in communities. (JTF NCR, AFP Public Affairs)

PASIG CITY, March 14 (PIA) -- The chiefs of the Metro Manila military and police offices have vowed to step up their unified efforts in promoting peace and development in communities, supporting the region's bid to help end local communist armed conflict in the country before the end of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte's term.

Armed Forces of the Philippines' Joint Task Force National Capital Region (JTF NCR) Chief Brig. Gen. Marceliano Teofilo and National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Chief Brig. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr. both led their respective personnel in fleshing out the conduct of a 7-day Joint NCRPO –JTFNCR, AFP Community Support Program (CSP) sessions to strategize and achieve inclusive and sustainable peace in the barangay level.

JTF NCR Chief Brig. Gen. Marceliano Teofilo and NCRPO Chief Brig. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr. exhange light moment during the sessions. (JTF NCR, AFP Public Affairs photo)

There, Gen. Danao and Gen. Teofilo both expressed their organization's commitment to ensure the proficient and effective implementation of the "Whole of Nation” approach as indicated under Executive Order 70 duly signed by President Duterte.

"CSP operations demand a lot of passion and dedication, and being a 'CSP operator' you need to have both, to contribute on our mission accomplishment, and specialy to save our fellow contrymen," Gen. Teofilo said in his speech.

"If you love what you are doing, you will learn to understand the people and your responsibilities not just a soldier or policeman, but as a Filipino," he added.

"Part of this initiative is to improve and synchronize the efforts of the government to deliver services and development programs in areas at risk of communist infiltration," JTF-NCR's public affairs chief 1Lt. Arrianne Bichara, for her part, told the PIA-NCR.

The Community Support Program, Bichara said, facilitates development building, reintroduce government services, and bridge gap between local governments and communities.

"Furthermore, it also helps in combating the insurgent deceptive activities in the National Capital Region, which is considered as a security threat of which all our government security forces and local government units are involved," she added.

The security forces also vowed to be relentless in pursuing efforts to protect and prevent affectation of the 1,710 barangays in NCR of insurgency, such as the implementation of its CSP. (PIA NCR)

Source: Philippines Information Agency (pia.gov.ph)