Cabinet members make final pitch for BOL

MANILA, Philippines — Members of the Cabinet joined President Duterte in  making a final pitch for the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).

Cabinet officials arrived at the Shariff Kabunsuan complex in Cotabato City on Saturday to join the President in a rally of support.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said the BOL, once ratified, would strengthen local governance and usher economic development into the region.

“Good governance will follow. We will see the rise of more leaders,” he said.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said members of the President’s Cabinet are unanimous in their support for the BOL.

Nograles said he believes the landmark measure “will be key to peace not only in Mindanao but throughout the country.”

He said the Duterte administration will work closely with the new Bangsamoro government in order to bring long-lasting peace, build infrastructure, create jobs, strengthen good governance and protect the environment.

“We will work with you (towards achieving) peace and development in Mindanao,” Nograles said.

National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said the BOL is a much-improved version because it “brings together” the MILF and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

“Let us support the BOL for peace, unity and progress,” Esperon said.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said he supports the BOL, first and foremost, because he hails from Maguindanao.

Lorenzana said he had recently spoken to top MILF and MNLF leaders who told him their organizations are ready and now gearing up for the BOL’s implementation.

He said MILF chairman Ebrahim Murad gave assurance that they “will do it right,” referring to the law’s implementation.

On the other hand, Lorenzana said MNLF chairman Yusoph Jikiri expressed confidence “the BOL will be good for the people.”

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, who was also part of the government delegation, recognized the sacrifices made by the MILF and all those who have been engaged in the decades-long struggle for genuine autonomy.

“The road to peace is a long and difficult one. You have gone through a lot,” Zubiri said.

Zubiri, among the principal authors of BOL in the Senate, promised that once the law is ratified, the Bangsamoro government “will no longer have to beg for funds.”

Malacañang expressed confidence that the BOL would gain the support of both Muslims and Christians. 

“I’m very optimistic that it will be supported by our Muslim brothers and sisters and by areas where there are Christians in Mindanao,” Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said.

Andanar was asked whether he thought the “yes” vote for BOL would win. 

“The President made his last speech last week. He said we need to support it and vote ‘yes’ so that the Bangsamoro Organic Law would be more successful,” he said. 

Vice President Leni Robredo urged the people in Mindanao to ratify the BOL, which she said would pave the way for lasting peace in the region.

Robredo said the BOL is one of the Duterte government’s efforts to correct the “historical injustice” that had sparked several conflicts in the region. 

“We always say that the historical injustice in the past is the root of all conflicts. And this is the attempt to correct that. But we all know that is not the only solution, answer to all our questions, but the first step towards lasting peace,” Robredo said.

Muslim lawmakers are optimistic about chances of BOL to bring peace in Mindanao.

House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Bai Sandra Sema expressed optimism about the chances of the BOL in bringing about lasting peace in war-torn Mindanao. 

“We are not only positive, optimistic, we are also very happy the BOL is being welcomed and embraced by our people on the ground,” she said.

“This BOL will address the long history of the sufferings of our people. That is what is primordial to us. We passed this law so that we can truly say that Bangsamoro is really part of our country,” the Maguindanao lawmaker said. 

Rep. Amihilda Sangcopan of party-list Anak Mindanao shared the same view, believing the Jan. 21 and Feb. 6 plebiscite will push through as scheduled even after the failure to allocate the BOL’s supposed P10-billion funding in the 2019 national budget. 

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, for her part, urged all eligible Mindanaoan voters to vote in favor of the creation of the Bangsamoro region and all stakeholders to protect the sanctity and integrity of the plebiscite. – With Paolo Romero, Alexis Romero, Helen Flores, Delon Porcalla