Senator Ferdinand “Bong-Bong” Marcos. AFP FILE PHOTO
The Senate on Monday resumed its hearings on the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) two months after the Mamasapano massacre that put to doubt the passage of the measure.
Senate local government panel chair Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has said the committee would tackle the failed ceasefire mechanisms at the height of the encounter that was put in place 11 hours after the firefight started.
“I have scheduled the hearing April 13 to specifically look at the ceasefire mechanisms in case of encounters like what happened in Mamasapano,” Marcos said in an earlier press conference.
“That’s eleven hours. I really want to reduce that 11 hours, if that happens again, to 11 minutes,” he said.
Marcos said he also wanted to discuss the report on the incident by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), whose involvement in the debacle put into question its peace deal with government.
“But to proceed on that hearing on that subject, I really need to see the MILF report , which they mysteriously sent to Malaysia instead of the Philippines. Up until now I could not understand,” the senator said.
The MILF in its report said the lack of coordination by the SAF with the MILF despite a standing ceasefire sparked the 12-hour gunfight in an MILF territory where SAF commandos killed international terrorist Zulkilfi Bin Hir alias Marwan. Meanwhile, Marwan’s deputy Basit Usman escaped. The MILF has been accused of and denied coddling the notorious terrorists.
The Moro group has also said the SAF fired the first shot.
Congressional support for the BBL, that seeks to implement the peace deal to create a more politically autonomous Bangsamoro entity, waned in the aftermath of the botched operation in Mamasapano town, Maguindanao last Jan. 25 that killed 44 Special Action Force (SAF) commandos, 18 MILF fighters and five civilians.