AFP chief Sobejana won’t comment on Parlade’s ‘red-tagging’ of pantry organizers

Armed Forces chief General Cirilito Sobejana on Thursday refused to comment on Lieutenant General Antonio Parlade Jr's remarks against organizers of community pantries, including on Maginhawa Community Pantry’s Anna Patricia Non.

In an interview with One News Tuesday, Parlade, who is spokesperson for the National Task Force on Ending the Local Armed Conflict, used the Biblical story of the forbidden fruits as an analogy to the possible link of community pantry organizers to communist rebels.

Parlade is also commander of the Armed Forces Southern Luzon Command.

When asked to comment on it, Sobejana said: “I don’t want to comment directly on what he had said.”

“Instead, I would say that all humanitarian efforts are being supported by us especially during this time I should say we are in a turmoil,” he added.

Sobejana said he had ordered the Civil-Military Operations Office (J7) to support various community pantries that appeared across the country amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I already directed my J7 to issue a directive to all our units to organize themselves particularly the civil military operations unit and support this kind of undertaking among the other partners in the society,” he said.

Sobejana said the AFP would look into the alleged anti-government pamphlets spotted at a community pantry.

He said the military would check how these materials surfaced in these activities, which are supposed to be about humanitarian efforts.

“Tinitignan, in-evaluate natin, bina-validate natin kung bakit nagkaroon ng ganung klaseng pamphlet. Samantalang ang activity naman ay pagtulong sa ating kababayan na nangangailangan,” he said.

(We will look into it, evaluate, validate why this kind of pamphlets were there even if the activity is about helping our countrymen who are in need.)

Parlade Jr. on Tuesday denied the alleged red-tagging of some individuals, but admitted that they are checking the background of the organizers of community pantries.

“We're just checking itong background ng mga ‘to. Yes, tsini-check ‘yan [We’re just checking their background. Yes, they are being checked],” Parlade told Super Radyo dzBB.

“Habang nandoon sila sa community, meron silang propaganda na ginagawa. May sinasabi silang gutom ang mga tao dahil sa kapalpakan ng gobyerno, kung anu-ano pa,” added.

(They're spreading propaganda while at the community pantry. They are saying that the people are hungry because of government failure, among other propaganda.)

Non had denied any links to communist groups.

“Last thing na kailangan ko is i-explain sa mga tao ay kung ano ako, sino ba ako, ganyan, kasi ang malinaw ang intention ko ay mai-set up na community pantry and makakain ‘yung mga tao,” she said Tuesday.

(The last thing I need to do is explain myself to people. My intentions are clear and that is to set up the community pantry for those in need.)

“Para lang po malinaw, wala po. At tsaka po, tigilan po natin ‘yung mga ganitong pagbibintang kasi napakadelikado po lalo na po sa panahon ngayon,” she added.

(To be clear, I have none. Furthermore, let’s stop this kind of blame because it’s really dangerous, especially in these times.)

On Thursday, she also mulled filing charges against those accusing her of having links to the communist movement.  

NTF-ELCAC called out

On Wednesday, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte called out the NTF-ELCAC for allegedly sowing fear among organizers of community pantries.

Belmonte said Non’s experience with the authorities asking for details after putting up the Maginhawa Community Pantry was not isolated.

“What they did was they went around, they asked questions, ang dami kong reports hindi lang 'yung kay Patricia,” Belmonte told veteran journalist Malou Mangahas in The Mangahas Interviews.

“Marami pang ibang community pantries ang nagsabi sa akin and the result of that was they sowed fear. Naging source of fear sila and apprehension rather than source of safety sa mga tao,” she added.

[There were other community pantries, not just Patricia's... Many other community pantries talked to me and the result of that was that they sowed fear. They became a source of fear rather than a source of safety for the people.] — Joviland Rita/RSJ/NB, GMA News