links: http://www.luwaran.com/index.php/new/item/545-house-makabayan-block-not-amenable-to-marcos-substitute-bill
House Makabayan block not amenable to Marcos’ substitute bill
On Monday, August 23, Rep. Karlos Isagani Zarate of Bayan Muna partylist warned against passing a version of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) that would not adhere to the provisions of the peace agreements signed between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
He said that passing the BBL just so President Benigno S. Aquino III
could cite a legacy of his administration will not address the root
cause of the long-standing Moro unrest.
“What’s the use of passing a law that cannot solve the problem?” he said.
The MILF cannot accept a version of the BBL with provisions that are
only 50-percent compliant to the Comprehensive Agreement on the
Bangsamoro (CAB) and the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB), he
said.
He said it is doubtful the BBL could be passed before Aquino leaves
office, as most lawmakers will be “busy” after filing the certificate of
candidacies in October.
Zarate said it will be difficult to muster a quorum as the election
period draws near. He cited that no sessions were held in the past days
due to lack of quorum.
Since July 17 when Congress resumed its sessions, only two lawmakers
were able to interpellate the BBL in the plenary with 28 items still up
for deliberation.
“If and when the interpellation of the BBL resumes, more congressmen
will attempt to dilute it further, for example, the provisions on the
control of resources,” Zarate said.
He said the substitute bill filed by Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has failed to live up to the provisions of the CAB and FAB.
He said Marcos’ bill rejected the “request of the MILF to reconsider
the provisions that have been omitted” from the original draft. He
called Marcos’ version of the BBL less than the existing Republic Act
9504, which amended RA 6734, the law creating the Autonomous Region in
Muslim Mindanao.
Zarate said the Makabayan bloc in Congress is not amenable to Marcos’
substitute bill as it will not provide a long-term solution to the
conflict.
He warned that passing a version of the BBL that would fail to address the problem will only result in more problems.
He cited, for instance, the Final Peace Agreement entered into by the government and the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996.
He said the next administration should also honor the CAB and the FAB or risk losing credibility in the international community.
“An agreement must always be respected,” he said. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)
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