MILF sees no easy approval for Bangsamoro law

MANILA, Philippines - The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is expecting the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) to be questioned before the Supreme Court and to face “trials and tribulations” while it is being deliberated upon by decision-makers.

The group, however, said it is unfazed by the challenges awaiting the draft law, which will implement the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.

“Today, the real happening is in the Office of the President where the proposed BBL is under scrutiny; after which the battle will shift to Congress, then to the conduct of the plebiscite in which people will approve (or disapprove) of the BBL,” MILF said in an editorial posted on its website luwaran.com.

“That is not the end of the trials and tribulations. It is almost certain that people or groups will question the constitutionality of the BBL before the Supreme Court. All of these scenarios are risks-laden, but the MILF is not cowed at all,” it added.

Last March, the government and the MILF signed the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, the document that will serve as basis of the BBL. The agreement will pave the way for the creation of a new region with enhanced political and economic autonomy.

The Bangsamoro Transition Commission submitted the draft of the BBL to Malacañang last April.  A legal team from the Office of the President was tasked to review the draft law before endorsing it to Congress.

The government originally planned to submit the draft law to Congress in May but the deadline was not met. The final draft of the BBL, one of the priority measures of Malacañang, was submitted to Aquino last Wednesday after a series of reviews by the peace panels.

The MILF said it won’t be answering questions that are based on suppositions including the possibility that the BBL will not be approved by Congress or is declared unconstitutional.

“It is rare or not at all that success comes in handy or on a silver platter. There are no rewards without risk. Taking risks is part of the undertaking,” the group said.

”What is good is that both parties are in a problem-solving exercise. They have also set aside rigidity in favor of creativity, so that even hard issues are not handled fairly well,” it added.

The MILF is optimistic that the BBL will soon be submitted to Congress.