To be part of Task Force on Bangsamoro development CV Muslim leaders endorse NCMF

CEBU, Philippines - More than 250 Muslims based in Central Visayas yesterday endorsed the state agency on Muslim affairs to be part of the Task Force on Bangsamoro Development.

The signed resolution was entitled “Resolution Expressing Support on the Implementation of the 2012 Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro, Including the Rehabilitation, Development and Protection of the Rights of the Internally Displaced Moros Residing Outside the Territory of the Bangsamoro.”

The endorsement was done during yesterday’s partnership forum on Exploring the Framework Agreement to Address the Plight of Internally Displaced Moros at the Cebu Grand Convention Center attended by over 250 Muslim individuals based in Central Visayas.

Different Muslim organizations all over the region attended the gathering.

Among the 250 participants of the consultation, seven came from Manila, six from Dumaguete City, five from Ormoc City, four from Bohol, two from Camotes, and the rest are from Metro Cebu, according to NCMF-7’s head count.

Attending as resource speakers before an audience of displaced Muslims were representatives from both the GHP and the MILF.

The event was the very first consultative forum in Cebu tackling the Bangsamoro Framework Agreement signed October 15, 2012.

National Commission of Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) 7 Regional Director Malo Manonggiring said this will be forwarded to various involved agencies like the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GPH) panel, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP), and the Office of the President.

“We do not know when this will be acted upon. We will wait for their reply on the resolution,” Manonggiring told The FREEMAN.

Administrative Order No. 37 signed February 13 by President Benigno Aquino III created the Task Force on Bangsamoro Development comprising of 16 appointed government agencies.

These include the Office of the Cabinet Secretary (OCS), OPPAP, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Labor and Employment.

Excluded in the list was NCMF, described in the March 13 resolution as the “duly mandated government sector tasked by the Philippine government to oversee the concerns and welfare of the Internally Displaced Moros throughout the country.” — (FREEMAN)