In a recent interview with Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle (FFPS), Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Chief Information Officer Marco Valbuena discussed the current state of the revolutionary movement amid President Marcos’ claims that the guerrilla forces have been defeated.
“Marcos’ declaration that there are ‘no more guerrilla groups’ in the Philippines is a big lie,” said Valbuena. “Marcos made the declaration to satisfy his US imperialist masters who has been pouring large amounts of funds to Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) counterinsurgency operations over the last few years, in the vain hope that it can completely crush the New People’s Army (NPA), so that they can have the puppet AFP give full attention to supporting the US war plans in the Indo-Pacific.”
“In the two months following the statement, there have been at least 31 armed encounters between the AFP and the NPA,” Valbuena added. “These armed encounters clearly belie Marcos’ claims that there are no more guerrilla groups in the Philippines. In fact, the AFP higher echelon has ordered combat battalions of the AFP to intensify counter-guerrilla operations in the hope of encircling and engaging the NPA in decisive battles.”
Figure 1: Armed incidents involving the New People’s Army and Armed Forces of the Philippines from August to September 2025
Despite the continuing all-out offensives by the AFP, reports highlight that the NPA has been able to persevere in its guerrilla war against the US-backed state forces.
“To ensure success in overcoming the enemy’s offensives, units of the NPA are expanding and consolidating their mass base. They are opening brand new areas to further enlarge the mass base of the people’s army, as well as recovering old base areas, which were neglected due to past errors of self-constriction, conservatism and prolonged mountain basing. The masses are happy to see again their Red fighters,” said Valbuena. “We expect bigger achievements in the coming years.”
Following Valbuena’s remarks, Robert Reid, Global Chair of FFPS, emphasized the need to remain vigilant against news or propaganda influenced by US imperialism. “It is evident that all over the world, national liberation struggles are still demonized, tagged as ‘terrorist,’ and attacked both directly and indirectly. The US is the main proponent of this global war on ‘terror’ and uses every available mechanism. Mainstream news unfortunately often plays a big role in the propagation of fake news which itself becomes part of counterinsurgency efforts and the repression of peoples’ rights.”
“Supporters of the Filipino people’s struggles must remain alert to false propaganda from Marcos and the US. That is why we were very eager to interview the revolutionary leadership itself, to hear what the genuine representatives of the people who are struggling for national liberation have to say. It is essential that we anti-imperialists stand with the people at the forefront of such struggles and understand their truth. We must challenge all forms of black propaganda and misinformation that are ultimately aimed at subverting the Filipino people’s desire for a just and lasting peace,” said Sam Martin of the London-Philippines Solidarity Group, who conducted the interview on behalf of FFPS’ quarterly newsletter, “Balita from FFPS”.
Although the Marcos presidency maintains its campaign of killings, bombings, and militarization, the revolutionary movement continues to resist strongly.
“In the final analysis, it is the support and participation of the people that is the most critical factor that will determine the final outcome of the war. Any superiority in terms of weapons and technology possessed by the enemy becomes inconsequential in the face of the popular participation of the broad masses in guerrilla warfare,” closed Valbuena. “Even the massive financial and military backing provided by the US imperialists to the AFP, cannot compare to the people’s determination to fight by all means possible to end the oppressive and exploitative semicolonial and semifeudal system.”
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For the full interview, please refer to our website: https://ffps.info/2025/10/30/cpp/
About Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle (FFPS):
Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle (FFPS) / Friends of the National Democratic Front (FNDF) is a global organization that supports the Filipino people’s struggle for genuine national liberation as outlined in the 12 point program of the NDF. For more information, visit https://ffps.info.
Contact:
Eevee Garcia
Press Liaison Officer FFPS
ka_eevee@protonmail.com
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