Two spokespersons of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) — Presidential Communications Undersecretary Lorraine Badoy and Army Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. were issued gag orders following their statements on community pantries across the country.
In a message to reporters on Sunday, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon confirmed the order and said that the agency is not against the spirit of ‘bayanihan,' which is being highlighted by the works of the volunteers in community pantries.
“Yes, I did it to emphasize that [the] NTF-Elcac or Gen. Parlade or Usec. Badoy are not against bayanihan or community pantries,” Esperon said.
"Lest it be misunderstood, they will desist from making statements on community pantries. And NTF- ELCAC will support, observe and assist CPs, as does the whole
Both Badoy and Parlade recently drew flak on social media for 'red-tagging' Ana Patricia Non, the person behind the first community pantry set up in Maginhawa, Quezon City.
Parlade, in an interview, likened Non's initiative to the work of Satan in the Bible. He even accused the latter of using the supposed community pantries for propaganda.
Their statements did not sit well with the netizens, including Senators who later pushed to defunct NTF-ELCAC next year following its notorious cases of blatant red-tagging.
In response, Parlade called the suggestion 'stupid,' saying senators shouldn’t drag the whole NTF-ELCAC into the discussion if they have a problem with him.
