Zubiri hails bicam approval of Bangsamoro Organic Law

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri. (Photo by CATHY MIRANDA /INQUIRER.net)

A “new dawn” has come for the Bangsamoro people, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri exclaimed shortly after the congressional bicameral conference committee approved Wednesday night the proposed Bangsamo Basic Law, which is now called the Bangsamoro Organic Law.

The reconciled version of the measure will be sent back to the Senate and the House of Representatives on Monday for ratification.

Once ratified, it will be transmitted to President Rodrigo Duterte for signature.

Zubiri, head of the Senate contingent, said the law would not only address the aspirations of the Bangsamoro people but it is also expected to pave the way for peace in the region.

“They can now also convince the extremists, may mga nag iisip na mangugulo doon, sila na mismo – ang MILF and MINL – ngayon ay partners ng gobyerno in convincing their populations not to join extremism, not to join extremist groups, because there’s a new dawn in the Bangsamoro region,” he said in an interview after the approval of the measure

MILF stands for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, while MNLF stands for Moro National Liberation Front.

Zubiri’s counterpart, House Majority Leader Rodolfo Fariñas, said he was confident the approved measure would stand the test of constitutionality.

“We had several problems along the way because we could not grant everything they want,” he said. “In fairness to them, they accepted everything.”

Ghadzali Jaafar, chairman of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), said they were satisfied with the version approved by the panel.

“We’re satisfied, and as I say, it maybe not a perfect law, but it is good to start with,” Jaafar said in a separate interview.

Jaafar and other BTC members were present when the bicam panel approved the measure in the Senate.

READ: Bicam approves Bangsamoro Organic Law