Business groups issue joint statement on BBL
CONGRESSIONAL deliberations on the proposed law organizing an expanded Bangsamoro region resumes on Wednesday, on the heels of a joint statement by business groups urging the immediate passage of the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).
The parties behind the statement are: the ARMM Business Council; Alyansa Agrikultura; Bangsamoro Business Club; Employers Confederation of the Philippines; Makati Business Club; Management Association of the Philippines; Mindanao Business Council; Philippine Business for Social Progress; American Chamber of Commerce; Canadian Chamber of Commerce; European Chamber of Commerce; Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Philippine Association of Multinational Companies Regional Headquarters (PAMURI); and International Center for Innovation, Transformation and Excellence in Governance (INCITEGov).
“We, the undersigned business organizations, cognizant of the imperative to ensure lasting peace in Mindanao, allow Muslim Filipinos to exercise their right to genuine autonomy and catch up with the socioeconomic development in the rest of the country, and harness the potentials of the Bangsamoro region to be an indispensable part of the country’s economic engine, affirm our unwavering support for the swift passage of an acceptable and meaningful Bangsamoro Basic Law,” the statement began.
The statement then urged “our congressmen and senators to act with urgency to not only quickly enact the BBL, but also to pass a version that is consistent with the Constitution, adheres to the commitments contained in the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, and truly embodies the dreams and aspirations of Muslim Filipinos.”
The statement, to be sure, was also specific in its support for the draft BBL. The undersigned business groups favored the retention of “the original core territory of the Bangsamoro[emphasis in bold, also in the statement],… consistent with the principle of not reducing what is already present in the ARMM.”
“At its core, the BBL must not diminish what was already given to the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM),” went the statement, including its emphasis in bold.
The business groups further advocated “full fiscal autonomy” for the Bangsamoro region, together with “power over inland waters and ‘strategic minerals’ within its jurisdiction.”
“We believe that there is no other viable path to winning the peace in Mindanao’s conflicted areas but the completion of the peace process, and it cannot and will not move forward if the BBL remains stalled in Congress,” the statement in its conclusion said in part.
Congressional hearings on the proposed law, setting up the mechanisms for autonomy in Mindanao on the watch of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, started in September last year. But the draft BBL became mired in the aftermath of the Jan. 25 police operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, which led to the deaths of 44 members of the Special Action Force in the hands of fighters of the MILF and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters.
There was no reference to that incident in the statement.
For his part, Senate President Franklin M. Drilon said interpellations on Senate Bill No. 2894 will start today.
“And then after that, we will put that into calendar again next week,” said Mr. Drilon, who also noted the BBL as being a priority legislation.
The said bill, filed by Senator Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. is a substitute to the original draft by the MILF and the Office of the President. Mr. Marcos heads the Senate committee on local governments.
Sought for comment, MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Q. Iqbal said in a text message: “We expect lawmakers to be above themselves and politics and pass the [Bangsamoro Basic Law].”