Some lawmakers said the government's anti-communist task force, NTF-ELCAC, should be defunded for linking the community pantry movement to leftist insurgents.
A co-spokesperson of the NTF-ELCAC, Army Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade, in a recent television inteview even likened Ana Patricia Non, the originator of the lockdown's first community pantry, to Satan.
The P19 billion budget of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict should be reallocated to pandemic aid instead, Gabriela Women's Partylist Rep. Arlene Brosas said. Senators Joel Villanueva and Sherwin Gatchalian also floated the idea on social media.
"We cannot let billions in people's taxes be wasted in the unrelenting red-tagging spree of the NTF-ELCAC," said Rep. Brosas who proposed for the budget reallocation to reflect in the Bayanihan 3 bill that is currently in the works.
"We should move to defund NTF-ELCAC in the next budget. Sayang lang pera ng taong bayan (face palm emoji). Reallocate the current P19B budget for ayuda. Mas kailangan ito ng taumbayan kaysa sa mga ganitong kalokohan!," Sen. Joel Villanueva said in a tweet.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian then replied: "I agree bro. If these are the kind of people who will spend hard earned taxpayer's money, then it's not worth it."
The National Privacy Commission also condemned Parlade's statement, saying such labels "are unnecessary when the people are struggling to find every means to survive in this pandemic."
"It is during these trying times that we should not, by any means, fuel discrimnation against anyone who has done nothing to deserve such," privacy commissioner Raymund Liboro said.
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The Maginhawa community pantry that started the viral movement on Tuesday had to pause its operations due to red-tagging threats from state security officials.
"Kung gusto po nila itigil yung community pantry at ipagpatuloy yung red-tagging, sige po gawin niyo pero kaya niyo po ba pakainin and bigyan ng sapat na tulong yung mga taong ‘to?," founder Ana Patricia Non addressed detractors.
"Kasi kung hindi po kayo tutulong, wala po kayong maiaambag sa mga tao, hindi niyo po sila kikilalanin, mas mabuti nalang pong wag tayo magsalita ng mga ganitong bagay kasi ilang pamilya po naapektuhan, hindi po ako eh," she added.