‘Bangsamoro Bill dead if not passed by December 16’

MANILA, Philippines – The principal author-sponsor of the Bangsamoro Bill in the House of Representatives appears to be losing hope on its eventual approval.

“We have only 10 session days left to pass it,” Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez told reporters yesterday.

The bill would create a new Bangsamoro region in Muslim Mindanao if passed before lawmakers go on a month-long Christmas break in mid-December, the chairman of the ad hoc committee on the Bangsamoro Bill said.

“We will have no time for it when we reconvene in January. Mustering a quorum will be more difficult,” he said.

The bill could still be passed if there is a “more forceful intervention” from President Aquino, Rodriguez said.

He proposed that Aquino personally appeal to lawmakers to work on and pass the Bangsamoro Bill.

It is still in the period of plenary debates in   the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Several colleagues of Rodriguez have expressed their intention to grill him on the bill that he is sponsoring.

At the Senate, Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile has reportedly asked for at least one week to ask questions about the Bangsamoro Bill.

The two houses of Congress are scheduled to start their Christmas recess on Dec. 19.

Dec. 16 is the last session day of the House for this year since it convenes only from Monday through Wednesday.

Congress will be in session for only nine days after reconvening on Jan. 19 next year.

It will adjourn again on Feb. 6 for more than three months for the long national and local election campaign.

In talks with reporters in Kuala Lumpur, Aquino urged his congressional allies to approve the Bangsamoro Bill.

The House failed to muster a quorum on Monday despite appeals from some members for attendance.

Over the weekend, Isabela Rep. Rodolfo Albano III urged his colleagues to show up in the few remaining sessions for this year.

“There is so much to do with very little time left, but we must do our utmost not only to pass vital pieces of legislation but also leave a legacy of being a working and productive legislature,” he said.

Albano made the appeal on the eve of the resumption of the session of Congress after a weeklong break due to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in Manila.

“We have to make the most of the remaining session days. Let us cooperate and help the House leadership make the quorum to enable the chamber to do its job,” he said.

While he recognizes that every lawmaker has to attend to district constituents, it is also his or her duty to attend sessions and actively participate in debates and discussions of bills, Albano said.