The Regional Peacebuilding and Development Framework and Agenda (RPBDFA) for northern Mindanao was formally launched in Cagayan de Oro City on March 13.
Arnel M. Agabe of the Department of the Interior and the Local Government (DILG) for northern Mindanao says RPOC-10 embarked on Kalabugao Plains – Peace and Development Convergence Program (KP-PDCP) in 2013 to facilitate the attainment of lasting peace through socio-economic and environment for the indigenous peoples in the Kalabugao Plains. In a bid to do better for the entire region, the RPBDFA was started in 2015 with the assistance of GIZ and CUREXO. (Rodolfo D. Mendoza/PIA10)
Director Arnel M. Agabe of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for Region 10 said the RPBDFA would serve as a guide to be proactive in addressing peace and development issues, especially in Northern Mindanao.
This is a vital reference to unify understanding, synchronize efforts, and consolidate resources in the planning and in the implementation not only in conflict-affected communities.
The continuing demand for peace and development in Region 10 necessitates the writing of the book, RPBDFA of northern Mindanao.
The book contains what most people in Mindanao already know about their peace and development situation.
The persistence of this situation despite multiple programs to address it points to the need for more creative peace-building and development programs.
Capitol University Dance Troupe performed an interpretative dance on the identified major conflicts and recommended solutions as well as the historical and social context that sustain it as presented in the book during the launching ceremony.
In a peace and conflict analysis conducted, it revealed access and control of resources, in particular, land is a major driver of conflict which result in poverty and insurgency and its spillover effect to neighboring high urbanized cities — urban migration, unemployment, vulnerability to crimes, illegal drugs, and terrorism.
The publication of the book disseminates the experiences and ideas of respondents — farmers, fishers and laborers, politicians and government workers, indigenous peoples and migrant-settlers, women and youth on how peace and development should be pursued in the region.
Noting many of problems are caused by the breakdown of citizenship, Usec. Marivel C. Sacendoncillo for local government emphasized in her keynote message that peace is an entitlement of the people and it is likewise a responsibility of the people.
Hence, peacebuilding has to be anchored on responsible citizenship. “Change has to start with us,” she said.
“Solutions to conflict will come from realization that we are connected. People are interconnected with environment and that whole ecosystem is interconnected,” Sacendoncillo said.
The undersecretary further said issues will not only affect local governments but also local communities, and the solutions are not solely among local governments but also with communities.
She also noted the need to push forward and look at transformational peace — a peaceful environment that transforms communities, transforms lives from what we have now into something better.
“The embodiment of what is life has been clearly defined through ‘Ambisyon 2040’ which pass through study, consultation, dialogue with society,” Sacendoncillo revealed.
For his part, Asec. Manuel B. Felix for peace and order welcomed the support for all the efforts, dedication, and commitment to mainstreaming conflict sensitivity, culture recognition, gender responsiveness and child friendliness in the peacebuilding and development process of northern Mindanao.
Citing the answers in attaining peace are in people, Felix urged the people to be law-abiding.
Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC-10 ) Chairperson and Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar S. Moreno says RPBDFA is not perfect but is certainly a good step in the right direction. “It is their entitlement for the government to serve them,” Moreno emphasized. (Rodolfo D. Mendoza/PIA)
“The beauty of bringing development to the countryside is you know that it is needed and you know that it will have its optimal results. Giving the people in the mountains the opportunity to live a life that those in the highways have long enjoyed is beyond compare (such as switching or energization, inaugurating schoolbuildings, putting up a health or child development center),” said Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC-10) Chairperson and Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar S. Moreno.
Moreno recalled a convergence experience of the government in Lantad, in which he said Lantad symbolizes neglect “that the government has been guilty of.”
It was abandoned, and he said that is why the NPA made it its first headquarters in Mindanao.
“With Lantad, peace is attainable through development,” Moreno said.
The mayor also said it is their entitlement the government to serve them but the commitment to serve should be wholeheartedly.
Moreno, meanwhile, said the RPBDFA is not perfect but is certainly a good step in the right direction.
This project is a joint undertaking of the The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), DILG, and RPOC-10 in coordination with Capitol University Research and Extension (CUREXO).
https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1019933
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