FORMER Armed Forces (AFP) chief of staff and incoming Department of National Defense (DND) ‘Officer-In-Charge’ General Jose Faustino Jr., said that “unmasking” the organizations and personalities identified with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) is different from the accusation of “red-tagging” by CPP front organizations and their allies.
In a sit-down interview with The Manila Times, Faustino, who retired from military service in November 2021, said he shared the opinion of incoming National Security Adviser (NSA) Prof. Clarita Carlos of not resorting to ‘red-tagging’ of innocent civilians.
“We are against red-tagging. We do not condone it, even when I was still with the armed forces, we do not condone red-tagging,” Faustino said.
Carlos earlier said she is against labeling groups or individuals as communists without presenting evidence, saying the Marcos administration will focus more on addressing the root cause of the country’s insurgency.
“Wala naman tayong mahihita nang ganyan,” Carlos said in an earlier television interview.
Faustino added that if blame should be spread, it should fall directly to CPP founder Jose Maria Sison.
Faustino was referring to a 1987 video clip of Sison speaking at a gathering in Europe where he personally named the CPP “legal democratic forces” in the Philippines such as BAYAN (Bagong Alyansang Makabayan), KMU (Kilusang Mayo Uno), GABRIELA, ACT (Alliance of Concerned Teachers) and the LFS (League of Filipino Students) among others.
Hundreds of former leaders and cadres of these organizations who surrendered to the government have confirmed that these groups are CPP front organizations serving as the party’s recruitment centers for the party and the New People’s Army (NPA).
Faustino added that while he would not condone red-tagging, he would continue to “unmask the truth” behind these organizations.
“We are telling the truth. We are disseminating the nature of the threats in front of us,” Faustino said.