‘Unli’ termination, Joma says of Duterte’s latest ending of talks

Like an old broken record, Jose Maria Sison said of President Rodrigo Duterte’s latest announcement of termination of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) peace negotiations.

“Duterte is like an old broken record repeating ad nauseam his termination of the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations,” Sison, NDFP chief political consultant, said.

Duterte again announced Thursday at the 122nd Philippine Army Founding Anniversary at Fort Bonifacio in Manila that he has permanently ended peace negotiations with the Left.

“I am officially announcing the permanent termination of our talks between the government panel and the Communist Party of the Philippines,” Duterte said.

“You can maybe talk to the next President of this Republic one day,” he said.

Duterte’s announcement came three days after he dissolved his government’s negotiating panel and terminated its members led by Labor secretary Silvestre H. Bello III.

‘As early as November 2017’

But Sison said that Duterte’s latest announcement means nothing as the GRP leader already ended the peace negotiations in November 2017 and has since refused to return to the negotiating table.

“As far as the NDFP is concerned, Duterte formally killed the peace negotiations on November 23, 2017 with his Proclamation 360 terminating them,” Sison said.

Duterte’s repeated announcement of peace talks termination since then is merely driving more nails into the coffin of the negotiations under his regime, he added.

Sison said Duterte only wants the armed conflict to continue as an excuse to impose a de facto martial law nationwide and eventually a full-blown fascist dictatorship.

Duterte also wants to push through his charter change in order to impose his “bogus kind of federalism,” Sison said.

‘Waiting for a new GRP’

Sison agreed with Duterte that it may be best to wait for a new GRP administration to revive the stalled peace negotiations.

“As far as the NDFP is concerned, the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations can be resurrected in the future by a new GRP administration,” Sison said.

Sison said the Duterte regime may even be finished earlier than 2022.

“The Duterte regime is not eternal. It can be finished with the success of the oust movement, with the end of his term in 2022 or with his certain overthrow as he forces his way to a fascist dictatorship,” Sison said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)