MILF confident of Bangsamoro law's passage before yearend

COTABATO CITY, Philippines - The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is confident Congress will enact into law the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) before yearend as promised by President Benigno S. Aquino III.

The MILF’s chief negotiator, Muhaquer Iqbal, said they are counting on the pledges by certain members of the House of Representatives and the Senate to help hasten the BBL’s enactment.

The BBL, once enacted into law and ratified via a plebiscite in selected southern areas, will pave the way for the replacement of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao with a new MILF-led Bangsamoro political entity.

“Once the draft BBL reaches Congress, it will become a public document that is open to public scrutiny. It should be made public for all to know what it contains,” Iqbal told Catholic station dxMS here Monday morning.

Iqbal said they believe the national government will not renege on its commitment to see through the BBL’s passage for the final GPH-MILF peace compact to fully take off.

Earlier published reports said President Aquino will personally endorse the draft BBL to Congress on Wednesday, after certifying it as an urgent bill, before leaving for Europe for state engagements this week.

Iqbal told dxMS the MILF’s peace panel is ready to defend the BBL before members of Congress if required according to legislative procedures.

Radio reports on Monday said Iqbal and members of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission signed on Sunday afternoon the letter endorsing the draft BBL to the Office of the President, after a final review of its contents.

The commission, which is chaired by Iqbal, is comprised of seven representatives each from the government and the MILF.

The first draft of the BBL, which was more than 90 pages, became controversial after the government and the MILF disagreed on some of its sensitive provisions.

The GPH and MILF panels managed to break the impasse and reached a consensus on its format after a series of meetings in Malaysia and in Davao City in the past two months.