COTABATO CITY – Will there be enough time for Congress to pass the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law? This was the question now raised by many Muslims following the long delayed submission by President Benigno Aquino of the draft law to the House of Representatives.
Aquino has appealed to Congress to immediately pass the proposed law, but some lawmakers who are opposed to the Muslim rule have vowed to scrutinize every provision in the BBL and this early are planning to question the constitutionality of the proposed law to the Supreme Court. Congress has to review the proposed bill thoroughly.
“Sa atin naman pong Kongreso, nauunawaan namin na kailangan ninyong suriin nang mabuti ang panukalang batas na ito. Ang hiling lang namin, maipasa po sana ito sa lalong madaling panahon. Sa ganitong paraan po, mabibigyan natin ng sapat na oras ang ating mga kapatid na Muslim na makapaghanda, at tuluyang mapalago ang ipinunla nating pagbabago sa pamamahala sa Bangsamoro,” Aquino said.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said they aim to pass the proposed law in the first quarter of 2015, saying, it would give the Muslim autonomous region enough time to conduct a plebiscite and have the transition commission in place before the 2016 national elections.
Drilon said he is confident that the measure will be passed. “What we will look at with care is that the Bangsamoro Basic Law should be within the four corners of the Constitution,” he said.
Once the basic law is ratified, the Organic Law that created the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao will be repealed and replaced by the new Bangsamoro regional government – a parliamentary form of government.
“Malabo na yan at siguradong maraming mga kongresista na hindi pabor sa BBL ang siguradong mangunguna sa pagtutol nito. Wala ng oras dahil matagal na naantala ang pagpapasa ng BBL sa Malakanyang,” villager Abubakar Abdullah said.
The Bangsamoro Transition Commission which crafted the draft law submitted it to Aquino in April this year and he should have signed it the next month, but it has been delayed by so much review to ensure that all the provisions in it do not violate the Constitution.
The former rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which signed a peace agreement with Manila in March this year, has previously expressed serious concern over the delay in the signing of the proposed Muslim homeland.
Once Aquino signs the draft law, it can be ratified and implemented in time for the 2016 local and national elections. The law will pave the way for the establishment of the Bangsamoro region in 2016 that would replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao which is composed of Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao, including the cities of Lamitan and Marawi. (Mindanao Examiner)
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