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Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos prepares to deliver his speech during the State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives on July 28, 2025.
AFP / Ted Aljibe
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. claimed the Philippines is free of subversive groups, contrary to a recent military report on the deaths of eight New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.
During his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 28, Marcos announced that there are no more guerrilla groups left in the country, as if declaring victory over decades of armed rebellion.
“At sa wakas, wala na ring nalalabing grupong gerilya sa bansa, at titiyakin na ang pamahalaan na wala nang mabubuo muli,” Marcos said.
(And finally, there are no more remaining guerrilla groups in the country, and the government will ensure that none will be formed again.)
Such a sweeping claim implies that all armed rebels either surrendered to the government or were killed in clashes.
Rating: This is false.
Facts
Just two days after Marcos claimed in his SONA that guerrilla groups no longer exist in the country, military troops clashed with communist rebels in Northern Samar.
According to the Philippine Army’s 8th Infantry Division, soldiers engaged in two consecutive encounters with the Eastern Visayas Regional Party Committee of the New People’s Army (NPA) on July 31 in the hinterlands of Barangay San Isidro, Las Navas.
In a statement released on August 1, the infantry division said two clashes broke out that day: one at 2:30 a.m. and another at 10 a.m.
The firefights resulted in the deaths of eight suspected NPA members and the recovery of eight high-powered firearms.
The infantry division even said that Las Navas Mayor Philbert Tan appealed to the “remaining communist New People’s Army terrorists” (CNT) to surrender instead.
The reality on the ground reflects that armed resistance persists. Government figures may show reduced numbers in certain areas, but these do not immediately translate to the movement’s full disbandment.
“We therefore reaffirm our call to the remaining members of the CTGs (communist terrorist groups), this may be your best chance to lay down your arms, abandon the armed struggle, and return to the fold of the law,” 8th Infantry Division Major General Adonis Ariel Orio said.
“We will not stop until Eastern Visayas is free from your acts of terror. We will hit you hard," he added.
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) also disputed Marcos’ claim, stating that its armed wing, the NPA, has been rebuilding and reorganizing guerrilla units since 2017.
This was the time when the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) began its intensified campaign to suppress the insurgency.
"A new generation of young Red fighters continues to slowly rise among workers, peasants and petty-bourgeois intellectuals,” CPP chief spokesperson Marco Valbuena said on July 28.
Why we fact-checked this
The Marcos Jr. administration actually sought the revival of peace talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), which represents the CPP in negotiations.
In 2023, the government signed an agreement aimed at pursuing a peaceful resolution to the armed conflict. However, arrests and killings in military operations against insurgents have continued since then.
In a statement, the NDFP said recent encounters only add to the growing evidence of the Marcos administration’s militarist approach toward the revolutionary movement.
The CPP said Marcos’ statement effectively shuts the door on peace negotiations, as it “virtually declares” that talks are no longer on the table.
