Binay’s UNA calls ‘political ceasefire’

UNA interim president Toby Tiangco. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The Mamasapano massacre and the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) have forced a “political ceasefire” at the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) party of Vice President Jejomar Binay, according to its interim president and Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco.

Tiangco said political organization work at UNA has been “put on hold” as he and everyone else in Congress have been focusing on the two national issues besetting the Aquino administration.

He said Mamasapano and the BBL have become the “main issues” for now that UNA preparations to boost the presidential bid of Binay in 2016 have taken a back seat.

Tiangco was referring to the Jan. 25 police operation to neutralize two known terrorists in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, that ended in the Special Action Force (SAF) being confronted by rebels from the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) resulting in the slaughter of 44 SAF commandos.

The brutal killing of the SAF 44 prompted Congress to take a second hard look at the BBL which proposes to create a new political entity to govern Muslim Mindanao to be led by the MILF.

Tiangco said the preparatory work at UNA involved organizing support groups and grassroots support.

He said the party had scheduled a meeting last month as part of its monthly gathering to report on the party’s progress. But the meeting had to be canceled because that was the height of discussions at the House on the Mamasapano and BBL issues. When House members meet, he said the discussions always dealth with Mamasapano and the BBL.

He also said that UNA was still waiting for its accreditation in the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and that was the reason why the party has not yet been formally launched.

“The organization is there, it’s just a matter of synchronizing and recalibrating the party,” Tiangco said in a phone interview.

According to Tiangco, the last time he and Binay spoke was last week and their discussions did not dwell on UNA or the latter’s presidential bid. He said the two had lunch with boxing champion Saranggani Rep. Manny Pacquiao that day and the centered Pacquiao’s impending fight with American boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.