Posted on February 19, 2015 10:59:00 PM
By Melissa Luz T. Lopez, Alden M. Monzon and Imee Charlee C. Delavin, Reporters
A LAWMAKER expects the House of Representatives to approve the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) by June after a clash between police and Moro rebels — and ensuing probes into the bloodbath — delayed its approval originally set for March 20.
The 75-member committee decided to suspend deliberations on House Bill 4994 on Feb. 9 to give way to ongoing investigations made by the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) Board of Inquiry into the Jan. 25 clash between members of the PNP’s Special Action Force (SAF), the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.
The encounter led to the deaths of 44 SAF commandos, 18 MILF fighters and several civilians. The botched mission also neutralized Malaysian bomb expert Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan but failed to apprehend Abdul Basit Usman, a Filipino bomb maker who has ties with the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf.
PANEL TO AWAIT REPORT
The ad hoc committee will await the findings of the Board of Inquiry and will take these into consideration in amending the Malacañang’s version of the Bangsamoro law, which has been the subject of discussions in the House and Senate since September.
The committee will again meet on March 5, the lawmaker said, adding that the BBL may secure the panel’s nod before the House adjourns sessions on March 20. If the bill secures the panel’s approval, the measure will be tackled at the plenary level once Congress resumes on May 4 — but only after the MILF meets two other “confidence-building measures” set by the government.
House Speaker Feliciano R. Belmonte, Jr. has also acknowledged that it will be “difficult” to secure the passage of the law, after the bloodbath sparked an uproar inside and outside the chamber.
The Senate has also suspended its deliberations on the bill. However, senators are behind the House as they have yet to finish public consultations for the law.
Sought for comment, government peace panel chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said in a text message: “We welcome the announcement as it will give us the opportunity to clarify questions about the BBL and the peace process.”
DON’T RUSH LAW
Meanwhile, MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Q. Iqbal said in a phone interview on Wednesday that there is no need to rush the law, but maintained that the bill should be passed without amendments.
“Wala tayong magagawa, napunta tayo sa ganitong sitwasyon. Hindi naman kailangang madaliin, (We can’t do anything about it because we have been placed in this kind of situation. We don’t need to rush it,)” Mr. Iqbal said. “The BBL is based on a framework agreement, we cannot go beyond that.”
However, Mr. Rodriguez said keeping the BBL as it stands is “impossible,” as the committee will have to inject changes to make it constitutional. They will also introduce safeguards that will prevent local police and military forces in the proposed Bangsamoro region from abusing their power.
For his part, Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr. said in a statement that “[w]e cannot just rubber-stamp the draft BBL (Bangsamoro) as it has been given us.”
NO NEED FOR LEDAC MEETINGS
In Malacañang, Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma, Jr. said that there is no need to call for a Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) meeting to ensure the passage of the Bangsamoro law.
“[T]he work of the LEDAC continues through technical working groups and members of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office to ensure there is no disruption in the coordination between the Executive and the Legislative, and we could see, that so far, a substantial number of bills, tagged as priorities have been passed,” he said in a news briefing.
Malacañang has earlier submitted a 29-item priority list it want enacted by Congress including the Bangsamoro law that will provide legal framework to the envisioned new, expanded autonomous region in Mindanao.
There have been only three LEDAC meetings since President Benigno S. C. Aquino III assumed office in 2010 — two in 2011, and one in 2012. There have been no LEDAC meetings in 2013 and 2014, and the LEDAC has yet to meet this year.
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