The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is prodding the government to submit the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) to Congress as it remains hanging more than one month after it was submitted to Malacanang. The MILF, in its official website, expressed concern over the fate of the BBL, saying time is not on the side of the BBL’s approval.
“All parties must tighten their belt to ensure the smooth-sailing of the BBL. For sure, we do not have the benefit of so much time at our disposal,” the MILF said in its website.
A Palace official said last May 25 that Malacanang is stepping up its review of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, saying that it will be soon submitted to Congress which it had not done until now.
Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said time is running out for the submission of the draft law to Congress.
Iqbal also chairs the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), comprised of experts from the government and the MILF, which drafted the bill.
Deputy presidential spokesman Abigail Valte said the Palace is working very hard on the review of the draft law and the President himself made several follow ups on the Palace undertaking.
The MILF submitted its proposed BBL, crafted by the 15-member Bangsamoro Transition Committee (BTC), to the Office of the President (OP) last April 22 or less than a month after the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) last March 27.
“The proposed BBL is supposed to be the start of the work to legislate a political agreement contained in the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro,” the MILF said.
The MILF explained that it is for this reason that most of the provisions of the BBL were copy-pasted from signed documents; others were culled from recommendations from civil society organizations (CSOs), non-government organizations (NGOs), local government units (LGUs), peace workers and individuals; and the rest to flesh out gray areas in the CAB but taking account its spirit.
“But sure enough, the dose of medicine contained in the BBL, as crafted by the BTC, will not please everybody’s taste. This includes people whose vocation and forte is to see only the legal side of the document or argument. In such an eventuality, the long haul ahead can be predicted”, the MILF said.
The MILF said the BTC, chaired by MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal, is ready for engagement with the OP in furtherance of the BBL.
“On the side of the BTC, it has never doubted that this engagement with the OP is forthcoming, because there is no other way to handle it. With heart and soul, the BTC commissioners have poured it all in crafting this historic document. All of the 15 commissioners, except one, signed the BBL”, said the MILF.On the other hand, the MILF said it will not engage into any matter pertaining to the BBL outside the peace negotiation but vowed to closely monitor the developments.
“For the MILF, there will be no open engagement vis-à-vis BBL, except perhaps by those connected with the peace negotiation. But surely, it will monitor the movement of the document very closely. Any slip in the handling can spell a great difference,” said the MILF.
“This can only be averted through strong partnership with government”, it added.
“The President himself has made several follow-ups on the legal team but the President is also cognizant and is understanding of the task that is at hand,” Valte said.
Valte also said the President also was a given a copy of the three-inch thick BBL draft.
Valte quoted the President as saying: “I am very cognizant of the urgency but I’m also understanding of the task at hand.”
“The President has been periodically checking on the review,” she said.
Congress will ratify the BBL which will replace the organic act that created the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
Peace Adviser Teresita Deles expressed confidence that the draft bill would be submitted before Congress adjourns on June 7.
She said the President wants to make it sure that he certifies the draft as urgent that can be defended in Congress during deliberations.
Deles said the Chief Executive does not want false promises to achieve a lasting peace in Mindanao which for several decades ravaged the region.
Last month, a group of Philippine officials, mostly members of Congress, have made a five-day study visit to Spain where they experienced a first-hand observation on the workings of Spain’s autonomous region that could serve as a model for the proposed Bangsamoro substate.
Deles, who was also a member of the delegation, said that during the study visit, the Filipino delegation was given a first-hand view of the experiences of Spain in the setting up of its 17 autonomous communities, provided with best practices and lessons learned on the relationships between the central and autonomous governments as well as on territorial and political organization, public administration, decentralization and models of local autonomy.
The legislators also visited the local government units of Galicia, namely, the municipalities of Santiago and Cambados as well as Madrid for in-depth discussions on their specific autonomy systems.
“We’ve heard from the people themselves. We’ve heard it from the President of the Parliament of Galicia, we’ve also heard from the mayor of the town of Cambados. We’ve also heard from the Xunta de Galicia (Government of Galicia), the executive branch, and met the President,” Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, a member of the delegation, said.
OPAPP pointed out that the Philippine legislators foresee a spur in development in the future Bangsamoro region following the study visit on Spain’s autonomy models.
“I am now envisioning a spur in Bangsamoro development,” Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said.
Pimentel, along with Senator Pia Cayetano and Representatives Deputy Speaker Pangalian Balindong, Jim Hataman-Salliman, Jesus Sacdalan, Bai Sandra Sema, Nancy Catamco, Rodolfo Biazon, Teodoro Baguilat Jr. and Arnulfo Go, participated in the study trip organized by the Spanish Embassy in Manila and funded by the Agencia Española de Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarollo (AECID).
Philippine Ambassador to Spain Carlos Salinas accompanied the Philippine delegation throughout the visit.
“During this study trip, we were exposed to European Union standards and I am hoping that these EU standards can creep into the drafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law,” Pimentel said.
“If Europe is progressive because of these standards, I am hoping that the Bangsamoro will also progress,” he said.
Pimentel was referring to the different standards in governance and administration put in place by the Spanish national government and being followed and implemented by the autonomous regions.
On the other hand, Cayetano cited the health care in the autonomous community of Galicia as an example. “The national government and the national laws still dictate the number of systems or standards that one must provide but the implementation reside with the autonomous government,” she said.
“Seeing how it works here gives me better ideas on how to share the power,” Cayetano said.
“In all of these learning and information they gave us, somehow we have a working knowledge on how a country like Spain which gave autonomy to 17 regions can become a model for possible adaptation on the BBL (Bangsamoro Basic Law),” Rodriguez added.
Other delegates to the study visit included OPAPP officials, namely Undersecretary Jose Lorena, Assistant Secretary Rose Romero, Director Polly Michelle Cunanan and the legal team of the government peace panel, Atty. Anna Tarhata Basman and Atty. Armi Bayot.
http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/milf-getting-delay-in-bbl-okay
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