CAFGUs to secure construction of Kaliwa Dam —military

Special Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit (CAFGU) members will be hired to secure the construction of the Kaliwa Dam project in Quezon province, according to the chief of the Southern Luzon Command (SOLCOM).

On Monday, SOLCOM commander Lieutenant General Gilbert Gapay admitted that there are some security challenges on the project due to the presence of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the area.

“Of course for the security aspect, nandoon na rin 'yung NPA. Alam niyo naman may issue eh. Pag may issue andiyan 'yung mga 'yan,” Gapay said.

“What we intend to do is to augment this with the... what we call special CAFGUs... These are hired by the construction companies to secure 'yung kanilang development area. We will work hand in hand with the regular forces in the area,” he added.

Gapay said the police and military could not deploy an “ideal” number of security forces to the area as they also need to focus on other security concerns.

"So we also want to have an integrated security set-up in these areas kasi kung kami lang, malaking pwersa ang kailangan natin doon,” Gapay said.

"With different challenges in Southern Luzon, admittedly we cannot afford to deploy those big forces na ideal," he added. "That's why these forces will be augmented by special CAFGUs."

Gapay clarified that the CAFGUs who will be recruited will be under the supervision of government troops.

Asked how many will be recruited, Gapay said 120 will be enough, but he said it is still up to the magnitude of the project.

The China-funded Kaliwa Dam project seeks to develop a new water source to meet the water demand especially from residents of Metro Manila.

Some critics, however, opposed the project as they claimed that it will displace thousands of families and submerge some villages in Rizal and Quezon provinces. —KBK, GMA News