Noy ready to meet with senators on BBL
President Aquino is ready to meet with senators to discuss the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law but will not back down on its merits and constitutionality while at the same hinting it should not be used for election purposes.
“We understand there are a lot of opportunities to call attention especially with the upcoming elections next year. But a sober discussion and coordination (and) scrutiny of BBL, I suppose will make them see that it will withstand the test of constitutionality,” Aquino said.
After inspecting Marikina Elementary School in the city yesterday, the President told reporters that he was waiting for the signal from Senate President Franklin Drilon as to when he could talk to the senators regarding the BBL.
“Of course, there is a part of me that wants to talk to them. I don’t want them to think I am meddling because they are an independent body,” he said.
“So we need to balance and the only thing I can say is if they really want to talk to me… if they invite me to give an opinion in a meeting, why are we not going to do it?” Aquino said.
Aquino noted opinions that the provisions of the draft BBL would entail Charter change but also pointed out that the advertisements from members of the Constitutional Commission (ConCom), who crafted the Constitution, support the BBL because it was adherent to the Charter.
“Many times when the lawyers argue (they say) read the book on ConCom debates. Here we don’t need to read the book because the living members of the ConCom themselves are the ones who are saying and explaining the constitutionality of the BBL,” Aquino said.
The President said that as he told members of the House of Representatives when he met with them on the BBL, they could go scrutinize it to bits and pieces but they should see its importance in bringing peace and development in Mindanao.
“In English they call it nickel and dime me to death. Now I also told them, a problem that is not addressed or not given any solution does not become small but has the potential to become bigger,” the President said.
Aquino said decreasing the opportunity to come up with a new formula to achieve peace in Mindanao would not contribute to the country’s growth.
“The new mode of governance there... should not wait until January... because come March, it’s election ban already, they cannot do anything anymore,” Aquino said.
The President said this was the reason why he was pushing for the lawmakers to amend whatever needed amending in the BBL and present it to the people after its passage.
Aquino said they should also have sufficient time to explain why the system the administration was proposing would be better.
Senate hearing
The various sultanates and indigenous peoples’ groups in Mindanao attended the Senate public hearing yesterday to air their concerns that they might lose their identities and ancestral domain once the BBL is passed.
The groups also lamented why they were not consulted on the peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), although they would want lasting peace in Mindanao.
The Sultanates of Sulu and North Borneo were represented by Sultan Esmail Kiram II, Datu Albi Julkarnain of the Council of Royal Datus, Princess Sitti Liddy Tañedo, Council of Royal Ladies; Michael Mastura of the Sultanate of Maguindanao and Sultan Panangang Pangandaman of the Sultanate of Bandar Ingud Maharlika.
At the resumption of the hearing conducted by the Senate committee on local government chaired by Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr., members of the Sultanate of Sulu also expressed concern on proposed change of the historic name of Sulu Sea to Bangsamoro Water.
The creation of the “council of leaders” also failed to satisfy Sultanate institutions, even as allocation of seats in the parliament under the Bangsamoro government was also tackled during the hearing.
“The changing of historic Sulu Sea to Bangsamoro Water is viewed by the Sultanate of Sulu as an alarming provision in relation to the Sabah claim,” said Princess Jacel Kiram-Hasan.
Marcos expressed discontent with the apparent failure of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPPAP) and the government negotiating panel to consult the sultanates and the indigenous people’s groups during the crafting of the BBL.
“How did you imagine that something as wide-raging, as important, as profound as the creation of a Bangsamoro territory in Muslim Mindanao possibly have succeeded without the support and participation of the sultanates,” Marcos asked.
Marcos is furious that the OPPAP failed to discuss the BBL with the sultanates.
Undersecretary Jose Lorena of OPPAP said the panel failed to consult the members of the Moro National Liberation Front, the Sultanates of Mindanao, the indigenous people, or concerned local government officials during the negotiations for the peace process.
Lorena said the MILF was representing the Bangsamoro people during the negotiation process.
He added that OPPAP conducted a two-tier consultation process, which was the actual negotiation with the MILF and the talks with the royal families of Mindanao, the IPs and other stakeholders which would be done during the legislation process.
Sen. Francis Escudero also slammed the OPPAP and the peace panel for apparently ignoring the sultanates, indigenous groups and other sectors in the crafting of the BBL.
“Did the OPPAP and peace panel make due diligence that these groups were consulted?” Escudero asked. He said the major issues would have not cropped up had the OPPAP been more forthright with concerned sectors.
At this point, Lorena again received a mouthful from the Senate committee local government chairman. “Essentially Mr. Lorena, we are doing your job for you. This is something you should have done during the process of negotiations so that when you presented the BBL to Congress then that version of the BBL incorporated into it all the views, opinions, suggestions from stakeholders,” Marcos said.
He said there were many misgivings identified during the hearings but the Sabah claim should not be set aside. He also questioned the designation of Malaysia as the third-party facilitator of the peace agreement.
“The presence of Malaysia as the facilitator has been questioned because they are not an objective observer and they are not a party of interest,” Marcos said.
The various indigenous peoples’ groups also arrived in full force to express concern about the BBL, reiterating their call to retain identity and preserve ancestral domain.
The groups batted for the recognition of an identity distinct from the Bangsamoro, and the delineation of ancestral lands of the IPs.
“It is a reinstatement of the rights and privileges under the IPRA law,” said Timuay Gumbala Gunsi, a member of the organization of Teduray and Lambangian Conference based in Upi, Maguindanao.
Datu Roldan Babelon, IPS general secretary, said they want their indigenous name retained, and not Bangsamoro, and that ancestral domains be excluded from the proposed Bangsamoro territories.
BBL constitutional
The House version of the proposed BBL will hurdle scrutiny by the Supreme Court, the chairman of the ad hoc committee that drafted such version said yesterday.
“I think it will survive a constitutional challenge in the Supreme Court because we have either removed or amended the provisions that we believed were constitutionally questionable,” Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said in a television interview.
“We also changed or modified certain words and phrases that gave the impression that the proposed law would create a separate government or state,” he said.
He said among the provisions his committee deleted were those that would install a Wali or titular head of the envisioned Bangsamoro region, give the Bangsamoro chief minister primary disciplinary power over erring public officials in the region and require the Armed Forces of the Philippines to coordinate operations with the chief minister.
“A Wali is a ceremonial head of state. Since we are not creating a state, we removed the entire article on the installation of a Wali,” he added.
He pointed out that the committee upheld the constitutional authority of the Office of the Ombudsman over wayward public officials.
Rodriguez explained that in the case of the auditing, electoral, civil service, and human rights offices in the planned Bangsamoro region, it was made clear that these are regional extensions of the concerned constitutional agencies like the Commission on Audit and Commission on Elections.
“I wanted to have the provisions on these offices removed, but the proposal of my vice chairmen and several members to retain them prevailed. Thus, we had a compromise to make it clear that these are just extensions of constitutional commissions to make the provisions constitutional,” he said.
He said the phrase “Bangsamoro Basic Law” was changed to “Basic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region” to erase a possible connotation that lawmakers were creating a new nation or state.
“That is because ‘bangsa’ means nation, while ‘Bangsamoro’ could be misconstrued as ‘nation for the Moros.’ We are endorsing a proposed law for the planned Bangsamoro autonomous region, not for a Moro nation,” he stressed. –