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National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. does not see anything wrong with the strong campaign by some government officials, such as Southern Luzon Command chief Lieutenant General Antonio Parlade Jr., against the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army and their supposed "legal fronts."

In the "Laging Handa" press briefing, Esperon said he was not defending Parlade over his red-tagging against some personalities, instead, he supports him.

He also hailed Presidential Communications Operations Office Undersecretary Lorraine Badoy, a member of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, for her stance against the alleged fronts of the NPA.

"I am not defending General Parlade as well as Undersecretary Lorraine Badoy...instead I'm supporting (them)," he said.

Esperon cited some of the "legal fronts" of CPP-NPA.

He claimed that the Kaguma or the Kalipunan ng mga Gurong Makabayan is an underground organization of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers.

"What I'm saying is that the members of the ACT are not communists but there were those controlling them who are members of the underground movement, the Kalipunan ng mga Gurong Makabayan. And those are the organizations of the National Teachers' Bureau of the Communist Party of the Philippines," he said.

Esperon accused Migrante of being a legal front of underground organization Confederation of Migrant and Patriotic Filipinos; and League of Filipino Students as legal front of the Kabataang Makabayan.

"The children of Anakbayan, Kabataan Party-list or the College Editors Guild of the Philippines, which are legal and good organizations, but the members are being chosen, they are targeting those whom they want to recruit to become members of the Communist Party of the Philippines," he said.

He also claimed that the Malayang Kilusan ng Bagong Kababaihan is the underground organization, which controls Gabriela; the Makabayang Kawaning Pilipino controls Courage; and the Manananggol Para Sa Bayan is using the National Union of People's Lawyers as its legal front.

"We're not saying that the National Union of People's Lawyers are members of the Communist Party but they have members controlling the organization who are members of the Communist Party of the Philippines," he said.

He said the CPP-NPA recruits youths, such as from the LFS and Gabriela Youth.

He also accused the Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives of having a link with the leftist group.

Parlade earlier warned actress Liza Soberano and former Miss Universe Catriona Gray about their ties with Gabriela.

When the House deliberated the proposed 2021 PCOO budget, members of the Makabayan bloc grilled Badoy over her supposed red-tagging also. Celerina Monte/DMS