MANILA - The series of attacks by alleged members of the New People's Army (NPA) this week has "fueled doubts" on the National Democratic Front's (NDFP) sincerity in continuing peace negotiations with the government, presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said Saturday.
"Several recent serious offensives in Mindanao and elsewhere in the country allegedly committed by the CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines)-NPA-NDFP forces further fueled the public’s doubts on whether it is still worthwhile to continue the peace negotiations with them," Abella said in a statement Saturday.
The communist party's armed wing has been tagged in at least five attacks in various provinces within the span of a week.
Armed men who introduced themselves as communist rebels stormed a police station in Maasin, Iloilo Sunday.
On the same day, alleged NPA members fired at government troops in Davao City.
Two days later, several pieces of heavy equipment were torched by alleged NPA members in Palawan.
At least four were meanwhile injured in another ambush in Tacloban, Leyte Tuesday, while two people were killed in an alleged NPA ambush in Negros Occidental, Thursday.
"We are disturbed by the recent NPA attacks considering that their leaders in Europe issued a statement condemning the incident in Marawi," Abella said.
NDFP leaders earlier called on their armed wing to "refrain" from attacking government forces.
The communist party also offered to help the government in solving the Marawi crisis by deploying their armed troops to the conflict zone.
President Rodrigo Duterte acknowledged the "show of goodwill" but snubbed the proposal.
“I don’t know, but I’m not so keen about it. Anyway, it’s a show of goodwill,” Duterte said in a speech delivered in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay earlier this month.
Abella said the government will "further validate" details about recent NPA attacks and will "undertake corresponding and appropriate steps to deal decisively with the situation."
The attacks came weeks after the government suspended talks with the left for the second time since negotiations under the Duterte administration began last year.