The Role of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) in Addressing Local Communist Terrorist Group in Quezon Province

Insurgency in the Philippines has been going on for close to half a century and it is one of the armed conflicts that has been going on the longest. The administration of President Rodrigo Duterte hopes for long-term peace. In light of the serious objective of the government to bring an end to the communist insurgency in the country and to improve the quality of life of former rebels through a variety of interventions and programs. The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) is directly executed as part of a whole-nation approach in the Philippines to vanquish the local communist terrorist group and achieve both inclusive and long-lasting peace across the country. The primary purpose of the study is to determine the role of NTF-ELCAC in addressing the local communist terrorist group in Quezon Province. To quantify the data results in the study, a quantitative method was used. Through the use of the cluster sampling method, the primary respondents were the chosen residents from the three barangays in Quezon Province, predominantly from General Luna, Catanauan, and Macalelon, with a total of 70 respondents. Additionally, 30 NTF-ELCAC members from the Philippine Army also served as the primary respondents of the study. The researchers gathered the data from the Philippine Army using simple random sampling. Results show that most of the projects, programs, and activities were implemented by NTF-ELCAC in Quezon Province. Having said that, the task force has encountered a variety of problems, including those about transparency and funding, for which it is paramount for them to find solutions. In addition, the community was fully aware that there is National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) operating in the country. On the other hand, they do not have a thorough understanding that they also have a civic duty to perform in terms of the fight against the insurgency. Lastly, the study showed that the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) is highly effective in achieving its goals and objectives, particularly in the implementation of its flagship program Support Barangay Development Program (SBDP) and the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP), both of which are extremely beneficial to the individuals who are receiving its services.