Truth, not disinformation, guides NTF-ELCAC’s building better peace

December 18, 2025

We thank Caritas Philippines and the Episcopal Commission on Social Action, Justice and Peace (ECSA-JP) for opening space for principled public dialogue by raising questions on the proposed ₱8.08 billion allocation related to ending local communist armed conflict. Such scrutiny is part of democratic life, and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) engages it in good faith.

At the outset, however, a clear correction must be made. The ₱8.08 billion being cited is not an “NTF-ELCAC fund” in the way it is being portrayed. It is not a discretionary pool, not a patronage fund, and not an “ayuda” dispensed in exchange for compliance or silence. These characterizations are inaccurate.

This amount refers to the Barangay Development Program (BDP), a multi-agency development intervention implemented by regular line agencies such as the DPWH, DSWD, DA, DOH, DepEd, and others. NTF-ELCAC does not implement these projects, does not handle the funds, and does not disburse them. Its role is coordinative and integrative, not operational.

To conflate BDP allocations with an “NTF-ELCAC budget” is to misunderstand both the structure of government and the nature of the program. Equally important, the claim that BDP funds are a “reward for peace” must be corrected. The BDP exists because geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDAs) were, for decades, left without basic roads, schools, clinics, water systems, electricity, or livelihood support. This prolonged neglect created the vacuum that allowed the CPP-NPA-NDF and the armed insurgency to entrench themselves in these communities.

BDP is therefore not a prize handed out after compliance. It is a corrective intervention, belated state action to address historical exclusion and governance failure. Hindi ito gantimpala, kundi habol na pananagutan ng estado.

These projects are bottom-up, not imposed from above. Barangays identify their needs, local development councils endorse them, and LGUs validate and implement them. They are requested projects, not patronage instruments. To frame them otherwise erases the agency of communities and the democratic exercise that empowered them.

BDP projects are not cash handouts. They are basic, long-overdue infrastructure and social services. Farm-to-market roads, water systems, health stations, schools, and electrification are not substitutes for deeper reforms, but they are preconditions for dignity, access, and participation. Denying GIDAs these services risks perpetuating the very injustice all sectors condemn.

On the matter of human rights, NTF-ELCAC reiterates unequivocally that violations are not policy, not program, and not acceptable. Allegations must be investigated and accountability mechanisms remain open. At the same time, an honest human rights discussion must also confront abuses committed by the CPP-NPA, particularly terror-grooming and spy-tagging, practices that have led to intimidation and summary execution of civilians. Any human rights framework must condemn abuses consistently and without selective outrage.

The task force caution against uncritically adopting narratives that deliberately blur development with militarization and scrutiny with sabotage. Labeling all development in former conflict areas as coercive ultimately benefits those who thrive on perpetual underdevelopment and conflict.

We encourage Caritas Philippines and ECSA-JP to broaden engagement by also consulting line agencies and local communities that request and implement BDP projects. Evidence-based dialogue strengthens our democracy and mischaracterization weakens it.

NTF-ELCAC shares the Church’s desire for a peace that is just, inclusive, and lasting. Where we differ is not in ends, but in the portrayal of means. The ₱8.08 billion as a means is not a weapon, not a reward, and not a slush fund. It is a composite of programs meant to finally bring the state to places it abandoned for far too long.

We welcome continued engagement so that truth, not disinformation, guides our shared pursuit of building better peace grounded in justice.

USec Ernesto C Torres Jr

Executive Director

NTF ELCAC