Bato uses ‘courting a taken woman’ analogy in defending anti-insurgency fund

Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa on Monday likened liberating insurgency-infested barangays to wooing a woman who already has a long-term boyfriend.

"Nakapangligaw ka na ba ng isang babaeng mayroon nang matagal na boyfriend na gusto mong agawin 'yung babae?" Dela Rosa asked during the budget debates in the Senate plenary, opening a light moment among some senators.

"Nabanggit ko po ito dahil itong ating sitwasyon ngayon sa insurgency ay inihahalintulad ko sa panliligaw," he added.

The over 800 cleared barangays nationwide which are set to benefit from the P16- billion barangay development program under the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) had been under the influence of communist rebels for half a century, according to Dela Rosa.

"Fifty years in the making po itong nililigawan ng ating kasundaluhan, kapulisan na mapunta 'yung simpatya nila sa ating gobyerno," the former Philippine National Police chief said.

Dela Rosa underscored that if the barangays cleared from insurgency would be neglected, the rebels will get another foothold.

"Kapag tanggalin natin itong pondo na ito para sa barangay development program na 'yan, anong mangyayari?" he asked, adding that he has seen the horrors of war as a former policeman.

"Napakasakit po na ang simpatya ng mga tao whom we have sworn to serve and protect ay wala sa atin, nandoon sa kalaban dahil napabayaan sila," he added.

The senator further claimed that the so-called allies of the Communist Party of the Philippines are making efforts to block the anti-insurgency budget.

"Kaya 'yung mga taga-kabila nagkukumahog na—hindi 'yung mga legislator natin ha—'yung mga taga-kabila talaga, lalo na 'yung legal fronts ng mga komunista, nagkukumahog na harangin itong pondong ito dahil battle ito of winning the hearts and minds of the people," he said.

Dela Rosa's position on keeping the anti-insurgency fund was supported by Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, Senate Finance Committee chairperson Sonny Angara, and Senator Panfilo Lacson.

Angara said that to prevent duplication of government projects, those that will be implemented through the NTF-ELCAC fund should be itemized in the annex of the budget bill.

In the Senate, the minority senators have called for the realignment of the anti-insurgency funds to COVID-19 vaccines and calamity response, among other priorities.

The Makabayan bloc described the NTF-ELCAC's proposed multi-billion fund for 2021 as the "generals' pork." — RSJ, GMA News