Mindanao mayors vow support for draft Bangsamoro law

CLARK FREEPORT, Philippines – Mindanao mayors have vowed their support for the planned Bangsamoro region.

In a four-page declaration issued here  during  the three-day Mindanao Cluster Island Conference, the mayors pledged to “do away with ethnic pride and prejudice” in the pursuit of lasting peace.

They said the planned Bangsamoro region would “transform the island into a land of peace and opportunity without   conflict, hunger and suffering.”

The mayors also issued several resolutions, including one that endorsed the Mindanao Development Corridors Program.

League of Municipalities of the Philippines president Sandy Javier described the program as “a key strategy that would build infrastructure and spur the development of growth clusters to achieve balanced and inclusive growth.”

At the hearing of the ad hoc committee on the proposed law at the House of Representatives on Tuesday, retired Supreme Court associate justice Adolfo Azcuna maintained that the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law is not unconstitutional.

“Bangsamoro is an attempt to redress long historical imbalances,” he said.

“ It’s a valid provision because (it clarifies that) there is no dismemberment of the country involved,” Azcuna added.

Meanwhile, Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Borge Brende during a meeting with Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, reiterated his nation’s support for the Mindanao peace process. – Ding Cervantes, Jose Rodel Clapano, Pia Lee-Brago