MANILA, Sep. 30—The government peace panel in talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has appealed to Filipinos to stay in the course of peace as the deadline for the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) in the Senate and the House of Representatives was pushed to December 16.
“It’s disappointing, but we still hope it will soon become a law,” said Prof. Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, chair of the government peace panel.
Ferrer was speaking at Women and Peace: Reflecting on Achievements and Challenges on Women’s Participation in Celebration of the 15th Anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 last September 24.
“Our message is to stay on track, stay in the course, have patience and perseverance,” Ferrer said, but added that the public must speak up for peace to ensure that the process will be successful,” Ferrer said.
“There are many ways and means that we can still see this through,” Ferrer assured. “But we need to get our voices heard. We need that push coming from everyone,” she added.
The House of Representatives through House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr. earlier announced that the BBL would be put to a vote and can be passed on third and final reading by end of September, before Congress adjourns on October 9. Last week, however, both the Senate and the House announced the new December 16 deadline for the passage of the proposed measure, citing the need to prioritize the 2016 General Appropriations Act.
Despite this, the government peace panel is not giving up, noting that there is still enough time and that adjustments may be made in the proposed measure to mitigate the possible adverse effects that delays in passage would cause in terms of the transition from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to the envisioned Bangsamoro region.
The peace panel chief said the country should not give up and to keep on pushing for the passage of the proposed law.
“There’s still time and there are many flexibilities. We can adjust, say, the transitory provisions in the draft law. There can be room for adjustments there, for instance in how exactly the transition will play out given the delay in the passage of the law,” she added. (OPAPP)