Noy, Murad discuss Bangsamoro Law in Hiroshima

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino met with Moro Islamic Liberation Front chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim in Hiroshima, Japan on Tuesday.

“It was a one-on-one meeting with no Cabinet members present. As in their previous meetings, it is reasonable to infer that they discussed the progress of the peace process and how this may be brought to full fruition in accordance with the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro,” Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a press briefing yesterday.

The meeting coincided with the International Conference on Consolidation for Peace for Mindanao organized by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which the President also attended.

Aquino also held a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo.

Coloma cited the President’s keynote speech during the conference, where he recalled his meeting with Murad in Tokyo in 2011 – his first face to-face encounter with the MILF leader – which he described as a breakthrough in the peace process.

“The trust borne of that engagement was a positive turning point as it allowed us to move forward toward the realization of our shared aspirations,” he said, quoting the President’s speech.

Despite the delay in the drafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, which the President is expected to certify for urgent approval, Coloma said the trust and confidence between Aquino and Murad remain high and unshaken.

Coloma said the good relationship between the two led to the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro on March 27.

Coloma said the draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, which was supposed to be submitted to Congress last May, is still being studied.

He said the primary consideration of the Palace legal team was to ensure that it would be in accordance with the Constitution and could be defended before both houses of Congress.

“That is why it was deemed best to conduct a comprehensive and thorough study and we had heard assurances from Congress leaders that once it was submitted at the proper time, it would be acted on promptly,” he said.

Once the Bangsamoro Basic Law is passed and signed by the President, a plebiscite will be conducted in the envisioned core territory of the Bangsamoro to ratify the new government that will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao by 2016.

“The principle is, the real battleground is in the preparation itself,” Coloma said.

He also stressed the need to get inputs from both the government and the MILF.

“Once this is presented before Congress, the immediate concerns direct stakeholders namely: MILF, the people of Mindanao (will not be the only ones considered). The whole Congress of the Philippines will pass this… the representatives of the people from Luzon, Visayas and areas in Mindanao, which are not directly covered by the Bangsamoro Basic Law,” Coloma said.

He did not say if Murad expressed concern over the delay in the submission of the draft law to Congress, but assured the public that it is a priority of the Aquino administration.

Smooth sailing

Meanwhile, Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is confident the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law faces smooth sailing at the Senate.

Marcos, chairman of the Senate committee on local government, is optimistic Congress can pass the measure despite its tight schedule.

“I think it will not be as contentious in the Senate as it is already in the House (of Representatives) because there are parochial concerns for the congressmen,” he said.

“I am quite confident that when we come back, that there would already be a basic law, an organic law. In the meantime, we have already started in the committee, studying the annexes because that’s all we have,” he added.

He admitted that the process would not be simple because of the many issues raised, but is hopeful that they could beat the deadline. – With Christina Mendez