Retired military, police officials call for review of Bangsamoro bill

MANILA, Philippines—Former military and retired police officials wanted Congress to revisit key provisions of the Bangsamoro bill in light of the “misencounter” between government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that killed 44 elite cops in Maguindanao.

In a press conference, Magdalo Representative Francis Ashley Acedillo cited the bill’s provisions on gradual arms decommissioning of the MILF under its peace deal with government.

Under the bill, the decommissioning of the MILF’s firearms would be gradual in stages. The final decommissioning will only be held once the exit agreement is signed between the parties.

This means the MILF will still be bearing arms by the time Congress approves the bill this year and even when the MILF as a political party joins the 2016 elections, Acedillo said.

“They will enter the plebiscite and elections still largely armed. What does this say of the electoral process? Imagine how dangerous that is,” the former military official said.

ACT-CIS Rep. Samuel Pagdilao, a former Philippine National Police director, said he wants more teeth on the bill about the creation of the Bangsamoro police.

He said though under the bill the Bangsamoro police will be under the PNP. The former police official said he wanted to ensure that the Bangsamoro police would not sway from its loyalty to the PNP.

In their statement on Monday, the group who called themselves “Saturday Group” condemned the attack against their uniformed colleagues, urging Congress to suspend its deliberations over the bill pending the results of the investigation on the incident.

The group, led by Pagdilao, Magdalo Representatives Gary Alejano and Acedillo, Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop, Pangasinan Rep. Leopoldo Bataoil, also urged the lower chamber to conduct its own inquiry into the incident.

“As members of the House of Representatives and as former men in uniform ourselves in solidarity with our beleaguered comrades-in-arms, we condemn in the strongest terms these actions jointly perpetrated by the MILF and BIFF,” the group said.

The incident happened Sunday in Maguindanao where the members of the police Special Action Force were in an MILF area to serve arrest warrants on a wanted Jemaah Islamiyah member and a bomb expert.

But the elite cops were fired at by members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and armed elements of the MILF 105^th Base Command.

Authorities had called the attack by MILF a misencounter. MILF lead peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal meanwhile said the attack by MILF was only an act of self-defense as the police commandos were in an MILF territory.