Army sees NPA to further weaken with Sison’s death

By Jennifer P. Rendon

The Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division claimed an ever-weakened Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) following the death of its founder Jose Maria Sison.

“We expect that the organization would continuously weaken as they are also experiencing the same in the different guerrilla fronts in this part of the region,” Major General Benedict Arevalo, 3rd ID spokesperson, said.

He added that Sison’s death will have a tremendous effect on the organization since the latter is the architect and leader of the CPP-NPA-NDF.

“And when you lose a leader like that, definitely it will have a big impact on the organization of the CPP-NPA-NDF. We believe that they will have difficulty in coming up with someone to replace Joma Sison,” Arevalo said.

Further, Arevalo said they also foresee that Sison’s death will also cause some leadership struggle within the organization.

“We know that the CPP-NPA-NDF has so many leaders who want to maybe replace Joma Sison. Nevertheless, whoever will replace Joma Sison will not be as good as him,” he said.

Arevalo said that Sison could never be replaced given that he headed the organization for the last 50 years.

“With his experience, with his kind of leadership and we expect that the next leader will not be as brilliant or as effective as him,” he said.

The 83-year-old Sison died peacefully late Friday after two weeks of confinement in a hospital in Utrecht, the Netherlands, according to the party’s spokesman Marco Valbuena.

His death came 10 days before the party’s 54th anniversary on Dec. 26.

The CPP’s armed wing, the New People’s Army, was established months later in March 1969.

Sison had lived in self-exile in The Netherlands after former President Corazon Aquino released him from detention in 1986, following the “People Power” revolution.

The CPP vowed that the revolution being waged by its armed wing NPA and the NDF would continue.

“The Filipino proletariat and toiling people grieve the death of their teacher and guiding light,” the party said in a statement on its website.

“Even as we mourn, we vow to continue to give all our strength and determination to carry the revolution forward guided by the memory and teachings of the people’s beloved Ka Joma. Let the immortal revolutionary spirit of Ka Joma live on!” it said.