ALMOST a week before the communist-led New People’s Army (NPA) marked its 53rd founding day, some 13 rebels operating in the province of Agusan del Sur surrendered to the Army,military officials said Monday. The communist left wing NPA will be celebrating its founding anniversary on March 29, 2021. Army’s 4th Infantry Division public affairs chief Major Rodulfo Cordero said the 13 NPA members voluntarily surrendered to the 26th Infantry Battalion Headquarters on March 15, 2021. Cordero said the surrender is the result of the joint efforts of the Peace, Law Enforcement and Development (PLED) Support Team Clusters of the Municipal Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (MTF-ELCAC) in the municipalities of San Luis, Esperanza, La Paz and Talacogon, all of Agusan del Sur. 26IB Acting civil-military officer 2nd Lieutenant Cecille C. Tappa said of the 13 rebels, 12 of the surrenderers are members of the Guerilla Front (GF) 88 of the North Central Mindanao Regional Committee and the other one is a member of the GF8 North Eastern Mindanao Regional Committee (NEMRC). “They are mainly operating in the municipalities in Agusan del Sur,” Tappa said. Bad experiences and hardships while inside the NPA group and the fear of reportedly being beaten by the Army troops decided them to surrender, according to Tappa. They also laid down 13 firearms such as: 2 M16A1, 2 Carbine rifle, 2 homemade shotgun,  1 KG9, 1 UZI Cobray, 3 Cal. 45, 1 Cal. 38 and 1 Cal. 35 revolver  with assorted ammunitions, magazines and other war materiels. "Dako akong pasalamat sa 26IB tungod kay gihatagan ako ug dakong kahigayonan diin ako magbag-o sa akong kaugalingon aron diin mahatagan ug maayong kaugmaon usab ang akong pamilya,” Aka Jamil, one of the surrenderers said. 26IB commander Lt. Col. Reynald Romel A. Goce lauded the surrenderers for their courage and eagerness in turning back to the folds of law. He also reminded the citizens, especially in conflict-affected areas, to be more cautious and vigilant because it is believed that the armed group will conduct atrocities and other terrorism related activities for their upcoming anniversary. "The 26IB will always support peace agreements for those who are willing to go back to mainstream society but if you resist and continue terrorizing our countrymen, we will not hesitate to use our full capability to pin down each and every one of you,” Goce said. We are offering the rebels a way out, to surrender and start anew. Let us work together to attain peace and preserve our country for the upcoming generations, Goce said. Meanwhile, the surrenderees are now undertaking custodial debriefing at the 26IB headquarters and they will be enrolled in the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) benefits, according 2nd Lt. Tappa (Ben Balce)