COTABATO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 18, 2013) – UNITED Nationalist Alliance (UNA) senatorial bet San Juan City Rep. JV Ejercito Estrada urged the government to include in the discussions on the proposed creation of Bangsamoro the representation to Congress of the envisioned entity to not only to help address socio-economic woes in areas it will cover but to ensure the Bangsamoro people’s meaningful participation in the Philippine’s politics.
Ejercito Estrada said the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao which is proposed to be replaced by the new Bangsamoro, has consistently lagged behind other provinces in Mindanao, according to the National Statistical Coordination Board.
To remedy this, he pushed for a “champion or champions” to represent the region in Congress.
“Bangsamoro should be represented in the halls of Congress. The representative should help oversee the needs and uplift the lives of our Muslim brothers and sisters who will be covered by the new entity,” said the young lawmaker.
A Bangsamoro representative would also help hasten the development of the impoverished region given its economic potential as the country’s top producer of fish and marine resources, Ejercito Estrada added.
“We are all Filipinos and, together, should reap the benefits of development equitably and have our voices represented meaningfully as well on the political system,” said the young solon.
The Bangsamoro Framework Agreement was signed October last year by President Benigno Aquino III and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
The Philippine government and the MILF are still working on the details that will form the different annexes to the agreement. The framework document and the annexes will constitute the final agreement on the Bangsamoro entity.
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