Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and peace panel
chairman Mohagher Iqbal on Wednesday urged Malacanang to certify as urgent the
Basic Law on Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BLBAR).
Iqbal, in a press conference, said he also urged the House
leadership to pass the BLBAR by November or December 2015.
"The only window of opportunity is the next deadline,
if I may call it as such, which will be in November to December. After that, it
is all politics that fill the air," Iqbal said.
"I appeal to the honorable members of both Chambers of
Congress to rise up to the occasion and be statesmen even for one moment in the
history of this country. The fate of the BBL is in your hands, and history will
judge you on how you dispense with the BBL," he added.
Earlier, the House leadership said that lawmakers'
"conscience votes" would decide the fate of the proposed BLBAR at the
lower chamber.
Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. admitted that the lower
chamber may not approve the proposed BLBAR before its December 16 deadline,
saying he will not do a campaign to force his colleagues to pass it.
“I’m not going to talk to everybody for you to vote this
way, that way, let everybody vote the way he wants to have it voted,” Belmonte
said.
He also said that the chamber is running out of time to pass
the proposed BLBAR.
The lawmaker said that the long line of lawmakers who want
to interpellate has stretched the legislative process for the BLBAR.
The passage of the BLBAR has been delayed by the lack of
quorum at the House of Representatives in the past few weeks.
The BLBAR aims to create the new Bangsamoro juridical entity
replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
For her part, government peace panel chairman Miriam
Coronel-Ferrer said the passage of the proposed BLBAR before the Asia Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Meeting in November would send a strong
message to international community on government's peace efforts.
Ferrer said the passage of the peace measure would prove
that the lower chamber can pass a measure to end decades-long conflict in Mindanao .
"The (passage of the BLBAR) is going to be our message
to the APEC community that we will not squander a lost opportunity provided for
by the passage of the law that will provide that kind of environment to really jump
start peace, security and development in the region," she said.
According to Ferrer, it would not be a good sign if the
Congress fails to pass the peace measure.
"The whole world is watching this process. Kung
mangyari ang APEC at ang message na lumalabas sa buong mundo, hindi natin
masosolusyon ang kaguluhan natin dito sa Mindanao, that is not going to be a
good sign to them who are really pushing for economic integration that is
grounded on a very secure society of the Asia Pacific that is able to address
different security challenges and economic challenges the world is
facing," she noted.
The APEC is a regional economic forum established to
leverage the growing interdependence of the Asia-Pacific. This will be attended
by 21 world leaders.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=812523
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