Zambo residents rejoice over TRO

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Local officials and residents here were relieved and euphoric after the Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the signing of the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

“We are relieved, a TRO has been issued,” a jubilant Mayor Celso Lobregat said, announcing the development.

Lobregat said the TRO will prevent the government and MILF panels from forging the accord.

“We are happy with this development as this will allow us to know what is really being agreed upon by the two panels because the agreement is not clear to us,” Lobregat said.

News of the issuance of the TRO spread like wildfire as telephone calls and text messages were made and sent from all corners of this southern port city and the nearby cities of Isabela and Iligan.

The city mayor immediately announced the latest development to the public through radio stations here to alleviate the anxieties caused by the inclusion of the city into the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) of the MILF.

Lobregat, however, said they will continue their fight to spare not only their city but also other places affected by the ancestral domain demand.

Press Secretary Jesus Dureza, who has been giving him bad news, “now said he is bringing good news that the TRO was granted,” Lobregat said.

Local officials here, however, appealed to the people to stay vigilant regarding the peace negotiations and possible reprisal from groups who oppose the TRO.