STATEMENT ON BTA TERM EXTENSION

It is an incontrovertible fact that the ongoing pandemic has devastated much of the global economies as all available resources are utilized to fight and bring an end to this health scourge. The Philippines, an emerging economy, was not spared from this crisis as our economic gains for the past years have been almost wiped out, and our economy recovery, while gradually picking up, does not look promising at the moment. 

The challenging economic and public health situations have prompted our government to change its priorities such that the implementation of its major plans and programs has either taken a back seat or remained in suspended animation. This is the situation prevailing in the Bangsamoro region, as the autonomous and transitional government itself is doing its best to prevent the escalation of the health crisis. Thus, the implementation of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) has suffered an inordinate delay, which now imperatively demands a longer period for completion.

The bills pending in the House of Representatives which seek to extend the term of the BTA from 2022 to 2025 are a welcome development for the Bangsamoro people. Such extension will provide a fresh mandate to BTA members to roll out its plans and programs for the welfare and well-being of our constituents.

In the Bangsamoro Parliament alone, our mandate to enact major legislations has been seriously hampered. Although the major bills were already drafted even before the pandemic, their approval cannot be expedited without the requisite public consultations. The restriction on the people’s movements and poor internet connection among stakeholders have prevented the conduct of hearings and meetings for the deliberations of the pending bills.

The implementation of the normalization track did not also fare well. Out of the target of 40,000 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants for decommissioning, only 12,000 fighters were given a cash out of P100,000, which is way below the promised P1,000,000 total economic package for each member.

We should not also lose sight of the fact that the BTA has only become fully operational in August 2019 when funds were allotted to enable the parliament members to acquire their own staff. In addition, the presidential election season will be coming a few months from now. Again, this will possibly cause further delay.

Hence, working a gargantuan task on a shortened period is nearly impossible. Even transitional governments in other countries have been given ample time to fulfil their mandate.

Thus, the snail-paced implementation of the CAB, which is compounded by the lack of adequate financial support from the government, necessitates a revised timeline of accomplishment.

The push for a term extension is also necessary to reaffirm the government’s commitment to give the BTA a full authority to implement its own plans and programs, and enable the “peace dividends” to reach all our stakeholders in the region.

Besides, the CAB’s implementation is not designed to be mutually exclusive. On the contrary, it mandates a shared responsibility for its implementation among its stakeholders, particularly the government and the MILF.

Needless to say, the clamor of our people to immediately achieve economic progress and stable peace and order now lies in the hands of the Congress of the Philippines. We hope and pray that our esteemed legislators will see the merits of our plea and allow us to continue our work for the benefit of our people.