THE President has
the power to expand the proposed Bangsamoro entity in Mindanao even without the
opt-in close provided for in the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law now pending in
Congress, President Benigno Aquino III said in Iloilo City .
He said all it
would take was an Executive Order to transfer and reorganize the country’s
provinces and regions. He said he was able to unite the provinces of Negros
Occidental and Negros Oriental into a single island-region by issuing an
Executive Order.
“‘Yung opt-in in
particular, meron tayong mga mechanisms in place that, at some point in time,
may probinsiya na gustong sumama to a particular region. Currently, all it
takes is an executive order, as what we did with Negros
and what was done before my time in several instances,” Aquino said.
He made his
statement even as Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., head of the Senate’s local
government committee, said he was confident he could convince the Moro Islamic
Liberation Front to see the need for changes he would be making on the draft
Bangsamoro Basic Law.
In separate
statements, MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal and MalacaƱang again pushed
Congress to adopt the draft BBL instead of preparing a substitute bill to what
Marcos described as a flawed draft bill.
Marcos said they
should be patient and wait for the version they would be drafting.
“They can be sure
that we are not taking advantage of them and that we still consider them our
partners in peace. We know that they are a necessary part of that peace process
and we cannot do it without them,” Marcos said.
But various
Muslim groups on Thursday slamnmed Marcos for proposing a substitute bill to
replace the Bangsamoro Basic Law.
Sheik Bin Laden
of the Bangsamoro para sa Bayan said he had been talking with many MILF members
who had raised concern over the BBL’s non-passage.
“We are afraid of
the emergence of suicide bombers in different areas of Mindanao
if the BBL is not passed,” he told reporters.
Under the opt-in
clause of the proposed BBL, the provinces to the proposed Bangsamoro territory
may decide to be part of the political entity through a plebiscite.
But lawmakers are
wary of that provision, warning of a potential “creeping” expansion by the
Bangsamoro.
Aquino’s
made his statement after the leaders of the House of Representatives and the
Senate chose to delete from the draft BBL the controversial provision allowing
provinces to join the proposed Bangsamoro region after a plebiscite.
The BBL embodies
the government’s peace agreement with the MILF. It seeks to create a new
Bangsamoro political entity to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao.
The draft BBL is
still undergoing plenary debates in the House and committee deliberations in
the Senate.
Aquino is urging
the public to support the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law as it is getting
delayed in Congress.
He cited the
importance of enacting the measure that aims to establish a Bangsamoro
political entity based on the peace deal between the government and the MILF.
Aquino said all
he could do was convince Congress leaders to pass the bill.
“All I can do is
try and convince the leaders of both chambers and their members of the
importance of this particular bill and that it turns into a law. Sa dami namang
nakakausap ko cognizant sila na talagang kailangan natin ito at kailangang
maipatupad as soon as possible,” Aquino said.
He said both
chambers had been working overtime to pass the BBL.
“The details of
the draft bill are being scrutinized by both chambers. We held several meetings
and there were marathon sessions until
2:30 am. Was it Saturday or Sunday? Sunday, another meeting to discuss
this and what we were supposed to do,” Aquino said.
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2015/06/12/aquino-says-he-can-expand-bangsamoro-law-by-executive-order/
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