In less than a year, neophyte Senator Grace Poe, the chairperson of the Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs, has proved to be a competent senator.
Her handling of the Mamasapano clash investigation has been outstanding as she implemented a five-minute limit on senator’s questions.
We now wait for her committee report and her recommendations.
Their findings and recommendations will have a major impact on the consideration of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).
Both Houses of Congress have indefinitely suspended deliberations on the BBL in the aftermath of the bloody Mamasapano incident that resulted in the death of the 44 Special Action Force (SAF) commandos.
Senator Francis Escudero said that BBL would not pass if a vote were held today.
Expected to oppose the BBL are Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago, who considers the BBL unconstitutional; Senators Alan Peter Cayetano, Vicente “Tito” Sotto, and JV Ejercito.
In the House of Representatives the number of oppositors has grown, prompting Speaker Feliciano Belmonte to admit it will be difficult to pass the BBL.
Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, chairman of the 75-member special ad hoc committee on the BBL, said the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) must prove its sincerity in wanting peace by surrendering to the government its commanders and combatants responsible for the slaughter of the 44 SAF policemen, as well as their firearms and equipment.
In addition, the existing peace agreement between the government and the MILF cannot stand in the way of prosecuting its members who are responsible for the death of the SAF commandos, saying the laws do not stop to operate under a peace regime, according to Secretary Leila De Lima.
Among the criminal charges that can be filed against the MILF members involved in the Mamasapano incident are homicide, murder, direct assault, and rebellion if it is proven that they violated the existing ceasefire agreement with the government, according to De Lima. Also, the MILF not informing the government about the presence of armed groups and the presence of Marwan and Usman is a non-compliance of the peace pact.
These are some of the lawmakers’ reasons why it will be difficult to pass the BBL until all issues surrounding the Mamasapano clash have been answered. The measure can only move forward if the Senate and House’s respective investigations produce results in favor of pushing the BBL forward.
It is the duty of our lawmakers to do what is necessary to push for the national interest.
Iqbal’s statement
Mohagher Iqbal, the MILF’s peace panel chairman, has snubbed the two-day Senate hearings on the Mamasapano incident, sending instead the group’s chairman for the Committee on Cessation of Hostilities, Rasid Ladiasan.
Instead, he wrote a letter to the committee that he will only attend after the MILF has finished its own investigations. Further, he said that he will only attend and testify in an executive session.
In a surprise statement, he also said that the MILF remained a revolutionary group until the peace agreement with the government had been fully implemented.
Senators Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Alan Peter Cayetano reacted sharply to the Iqbal letter.
Marcos wanted clarification on the Iqbal letter whether the MILF assertion that it remained a revolutionary group could mean the government was still at war with it, adding that Iqbal statements contradicted the ceasefire agreement, which was violated during the Mamasapano incident, between their group and the government. The question is as to who violated it first.
Cayetano labelled the MILF as a terrorist organization for coddling and protecting terrorists Marwan and Usman.
Senator Pia Cayetano accused the MILF of disrespecting the Senate, saying — “This is the Republic of the Philippines, not the Republic of MILF.”
P-Noy into war games
Being a gun enthusiast and a military fanatic, it is not surprising that President Aquino would directly involve himself in the planning and approval of “Operation Wolverine” and “Operation Exodus.”
He should now take full responsibility for the ensuing fiasco.
President Aquino told AFP Chief of Staff, General Gregorio Catapang Jr. twice to coordinate with SAF on the project. All General Catapang did was to inform AFP Western Mindanao Command chief General Rustico Guerrero. As it turned out, Army’s 6th Infantry Division Major General Edmundo Pangilinan acted very slowly on relieved PNP-SAF commander Police Director Getulio Napeñas’ urgent request for reinforcements. He even held the recommendation of his brigade commander for artillery fire.
Forty-four SAF members did not deserve to die. Many of them could have been saved if General Pangilinan acted promptly.
But it is also true that the MILF performed an overkill. Clearly, there was no intent to let anyone live. Granting that Philippine National Police (PNP) Office-in-Charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina’s men failed to coordinate with the MILF for the lawful arrest of the two terrorist, that is not enough reason for the overkill.