Lack of House quorum still delaying BBL passage

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – Lack of quorum in the House of Representatives continues to delay the passage of a bill seeking to establish a Bangsamoro autonomous region.

Out of 290 lawmakers, only 70 were present when session resumed last Monday, according to Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, who chairs the ad hoc committee on the Bangsamoro Basic Law or BBL.

“We need at least 145 lawmakers to constitute a quorum,” he said.

However, Rodriguez remains optimistic that the Bangsamoro bill could still be passed if lawmakers attend the remaining sessions before Congress adjourns on Feb. 8.

“We are still in the period of amendments,” he said.

However, all the unconstitutional provisions have already been stripped when he introduced the bill, Rodriguez said.

He has removed the provisions on the Bangsamoro Command, the Bangsamoro Police, the Commission on Audit, the Civil Service Commission and the Commission on Elections, which violate the Constitution, he added.

Rodriguez said the “Wali” or supposed head of state of the envisioned Bangsamoro government, as well as the issuance of an exploration permit on strategic minerals of the country, have also been removed.

“We practically have nothing to discuss since we have already amended all unconstitutional provisions,” he said.

“What we need is a quorum. I urge my colleagues to attend the remaining session in the House so we can decide on the fate of the bill,” he added.

But Rodriguez no longer hopes of having the Bangsamoro Bill passed during the Aquino administration because of the lack of quorum.

It will be up to the next president whether to continue the peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to achieve lasting peace and development in Mindanao.

“What a pity,” he said.

Meanwhile, Senate President Franklin Drilon has vowed to continue pushing for the passage of the Bangsamoro bill if the House of Representatives would first act on it.

Renamed the Basic Law on the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, the bill is still being debated in the Senate with Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile a long way from finishing his interpellation.

Drilon said it is considered a bill of local application, “which means that we wait for the House of Representatives to pass its version.”

“And our legislative history of the ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) Law and other related laws would show that we always wait for the House to pass it, because bills of local application would originate from the House.”

“What we will do is we will keep on pushing the bill in the Senate,” he said.

“Right now it is in the period of interpellation. We hope to finish the period of interpellation and await the House action afterwards.”

Decommissioning derailed

Chief government negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer warned yesterday that the decommissioning of MILF fighters might be derailed if Congress fails to pass into law the Bangsamoro bill.

“If the law is not passed, it will stall the decommissioning program,” she said.

The next stage is supposed to take place after the enactment of the Bangsamoro bill, she added.

The military has estimated the MILF to have a strength of 10,000 fighters with varied types of weapons.

Leaders of the House on Monday said opposition to the Bangsamoro bill has greatly decreased due to the numerous amendments, but its approval before the end of the 16th Congress remains uncertain.

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. told reporters yesterday the House leadership will strongly push for the Bangsamoro bill’s passage but there is still no guarantee that it would be approved.

“You have to have a good quorum… hopefully we can pass it,” he said.

‘It will stabilize economy’

Government peace panel member Senen Bacani said yesterday the passage of the Bangsamoro bill will stabilize the Philippine economy.

It will assure local and foreign investors of a safer business environment in Mindanao, he said in a statement released by the Peace Process Media Bureau.

Bacani said the bill’s passage would bring inclusive growth to the country because economic growth in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao will help create more jobs and help solve poverty in the region.

“Unfortunately, security threats prevent businesses from establishing new ventures in the region,” he said.

The National Economic and Development Authority has forecast that the country’s economy would benefit immensely if the Bangsamoro bill would be enacted because increased business activity would boost economic growth in the envisioned Bangsamoro region to 12.8 percent annually and reduce the rate of poverty.

In a DevPlus publication released by the NEDA in June last year, NEDA Regional Office 11 director Maria Lourdes Lim said the plan is expected to push the regional economy to achieve double-digit growth rates in the first five years of the creation of the Bangsamoro, with gross regional domestic product per capita rising to P38,000 to P40,000, from the current P29,608.

“This will further narrow the regional disparities between the Bangsamoro and the rest of Mindanao regions,” she said.

“This kind of growth rate will reduce the poverty incidence rate in the Bangsamoro to anywhere from 50 to 52 percent by 2016.”

Bacani said the agriculture and fishing sectors would benefit most because the ARMM is the largest producer of cassava and seaweed in the country, fourth in corn and sixth in coconut.

“Promises were made by different sectors of society and it is time to make those promises a reality,” he said.

“The BBL promotes inclusive economic progress and stability from which every Filipino would benefit as a product of peace and security in Mindanao.”

In the same statement released by the Peace Process Media Bureau, former trade undersecretary Ernesto Ordoñez said the passage of the Bangsamoro bill would address security concerns in the area and stabilize the economy of southern Philippines.

“Investors are looking for stability in the area,” he said.

“The promises [from the business sector] have been coming in since the start of the BBL discussion. If we have these companies, there will be jobs.”

Ordoñez said the Bangsamoro need jobs but the armed conflict has prevented this.

The delay in the passage of the Bangsamoro bill has stalled progress in the roadmap to peace established by the Philippine government and MILF, he added.

Ordoñez reminded lawmakers of their important role in ending the armed conflict in Mindanao through their legislative power.

“We are calling on our congressmen and senators to pass a BBL that is consistent with 1987 Constitution and continues to protect the rights of the indigenous peoples in the Bangsamoro,” he said.

“We are talking of inclusive growth that will benefit the Moro people. It will be a shame to waste all efforts as we have come so far.

“Short-sighted politics should not derail this legislation. If we do not act now, we are losing this golden opportunity to show our government’s sincerity in ending this conflict. Stop politicking this legislation.”

Investments worth $366 million (P16.3 billion) were pledged for Mindanao by business leaders last June on the  assumption that the Bangsamoro bill would be passed into law.

Unifruitti Group of Companies chairman John Perrine said that the initial investments in agricultural products vowed by different companies would generate around 23,000 jobs in the envisioned Bangsamoro region.

Last Nov. 3, international and local business groups again renewed their call to both chambers of Congress to immediately pass the Bangsamoro bill to stabilize the security situation and make Mindanao more attractive to business ventures.

“[This is] a very sincere appeal to our political leaders to give peace a chance,” said Mindanao Business Council president Vicente Lao.

“Unless we try to correct the imbalances, the problem in Mindanao cannot be worked through the barrel of a gun. The best solution is economic intervention.

“It is difficult to invite business in an area with security concerns. Realities on the ground are in dire need of support. Let us give the Bangsamoro people a chance to chart their own destinies. The BBL is not a perfect document but it is the first step.” –Marvin Sy, Paolo Romero