The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) has expanded its crisis response operations to reach former rebels (FRs) and their families affected by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake in geographically isolated communities in Davao Occidental, Sultan Kudarat, and Sarangani.
OPAPRU Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento said Crisis Response Teams (CRTs) have been deployed to coordinate closely with local government units (LGUs), security forces, and partner-agencies to ensure the delivery of relief assistance and essential services to affected FR communities.
“Recognizing the urgent needs of affected former rebels in remote and hard-to-reach communities, our Crisis Response Teams, in close coordination with LGUs, security forces, and partner agencies, have mobilized additional resources to ensure timely delivery of relief assistance and essential services,” Sarmiento said.
He added that OPAPRU’s Local Conflict Transformation-Field Implementation Support Office (LCT-FISO) in Mindanao has activated CRTs composed of Area Management Unit personnel to conduct rapid needs assessments and monitor the situation of affected FR households.
Sarmiento said the agency’s expanded role in disaster response is part of efforts to integrate peacebuilding mechanisms into national and local disaster risk reduction and management systems.
“By actively participating in these disaster mechanisms, the agency can help institutionalize an inclusive disaster response framework that recognizes the unique context of FRs and their communities,” he said.
He also emphasized that involving former combatants in disaster preparedness and response strengthens community resilience and reinforces their reintegration into civilian life.
“Through the Transformation Program, FRs are not merely beneficiaries of assistance but are also being empowered to contribute to disaster response initiatives in their communities,” Sarmiento said.
On Saturday, the CRT of LCT-FISO Region 12, through the Area Management Unit–South Central Mindanao, visited Glan, Sarangani to assess the condition of 28 former rebel families, or around 140 individuals, who had been temporarily isolated due to impassable roads following the earthquake.
The team coordinated with the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) and the local Incident Command Post (ICP) to reach affected barangays and deliver relief assistance.
The 28 families, previously cut off from access due to damaged road networks, have since received government aid. Relief operations were also extended to Barangay Alegada.
CRT personnel also engaged with other FR evacuees at the ICP to conduct rapid situational assessments, identifying urgent needs as recovery efforts continue in the affected areas.