Año says NTF-ELCAC a venue for Catholic Church to relay its concerns

National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said on Saturday that the Catholic Church now has more opportunities to raise its concerns with the government after some of its members were named private sector representatives to the anti-insurgency body. 

On Thursday, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) said Bishop Reynaldo Evangelista and his alternate, Father Jerome Secillano, would represent the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

CBCP president Kalookan Bishop Pablo David later clarified that it was ''not exactly CBCP as a conference but the Episcopal Commission on Public Affairs that is there as a private sector representative.''

“We welcome the CBCP through [its] Episcopal Commission on Public Affairs to the NTF-ELCAC Executive Committee and we look forward to working with them in pursuing peace and development in all parts of the country, especially in conflict-affected areas,” Año said in a statement.

Año added that the NTF-ELCAC anticipates a productive engagement with the CBCP and is open to proposals from the Church in adopting "moral and ethical approaches in addressing communist insurgency," as suggested by David.

“We are opening the doors of NTF-ELCAC to the Church because it has an important role to play in ending violence and terrorism in the country. For more than 50 years, we have lived under the scourge of the communist armed conflict. With peace now in sight, the Church has an important role to play in ensuring peace and development in the long term,” he said.

"Because of this development, the Church will have more opportunity to relay its concerns since its mandate is to act as a liaison [between] the CBCP [and the] government,” Año added.

He said that the Church would make a significant contribution to the development of areas previously under the influence of the New People's Army and facilitate societal inclusivity in pursuit of peace.

“Given that we are now on the road to total victory, it’s necessary that we recalibrate the way we do things and the entry of the CBCP to NTF-ELCAC is one of changes we implemented under the Marcos Jr. administration,” Año said. — VBL, GMA Integrated News