CPP@54: Joma’s immortal revolutionary spirit will forever live
“We have so far frustrated the enemy’s declared objective of crushing the Party, the NPA and all forms of people’s resistance,” the CPP said.
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) gave Jose Maria Sison, founding chairperson of its Central Committee, “extraordinary tribute” in its traditional statement on its founding anniversary today.
On its 54th anniversary statement, the CPP said Sison, who died in The Netherlands last December 16, utilized his “masterly grasp” of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism in guiding the Party from inception, infancy and growth.
The revolutionary group also said that Sison’s writings—more than 30 volumes of essays and poems—will continue to guide them.
“Ka Joma has bequeathed to us a treasure trove of Marxist-Leninist-Maoist work in which his immortal revolutionary spirit will forever live to guide the next generation of Party cadres to greater heights,” the group said.
Sison’s books Philippine Society and Revolution as well as Struggle for National Democracy have been required reading for countless activists who later joined the CPP and the New People’s Army (NPA) that has waged one of the world’s oldest armed revolutions.
Celebrating their first anniversary without its ideological leader, the CPP also said it lost members of its Central Committee, its Political Bureau and Executive Committee as well as cadres, Red fighters and mass activists in the last year.
The Party however said its 54th year remains to be a cause of celebration for the “great achievements” it accumulated in “more than five decades of leading the people’s democratic revolution and advancing the Filipino people’s aspiration for freedom and democracy.”
‘Amid government’s onslaught’
The CPP said it has built and maintains “thousands of committees of leadership and branches” in 14 of the country’s regions as well as in hundreds of towns and districts and in thousands of villages across the country.
It said the NPA has “thousands” of Red fighters primarily armed with high-powered rifles and explosives.
“In the course of waging protracted people’s war, the NPA has established more than 110 guerrilla fronts across the country and has built thousands of local mass organizations,” the CPP said.
The group also said the NPA has frustrated Manila government’s offensives as well as focused and sustained operations by shifting from one guerrilla front to another.
The CPP said the NPA have successfully mounted tactical offensives against isolated, weak and tired enemy units to disrupt the government military’s operations and plans.
“We have so far frustrated the enemy’s declared objective of crushing the Party, the NPA and all forms of people’s resistance,” the CPP said.
“The Party and revolutionary movement have withstood more than five years of relentless attacks which have employed the worst forms of state terrorism,” it added.
Earlier, the CPP has directed the NPA to perform military tributes to Sison at daybreak today.
Both the CPP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines earlier said they will not be declaring ceasefires over the Christmas and New Year holiday season. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
