MILF: Aquino administration can defend Bangsamoro agreements before SC

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) expressed confidence on Monday in the ability of  the national government to defend the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB) and Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) now being questioned before the Supreme Court.

Ghadzali Jaafar, MILF vice chair for political affairs, acknowledged the Philippine government’s capability and responsibility to explain before the highest court the constitutionality of FAB and CAB.

This was Jaafar’s reaction after the Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa) asked the Supreme Court to declare FAB and CAB unconstitutional.

Earlier, MILF chief negotiator Mohaqher Iqbal said the motive and timing of Philconsa was questionable but he recognized their right to challenge CAB and FAB before the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, a Mindanao-based non-government organization has questioned the motive behind the petition questioning FAB and CAB.

Sister Arnold Maria Noel of the Balay Rehabilitation Center said the credibility of the petition was questionable because it should have been filed before the decommissioning of firearms of the MILF last week.

Led by Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez of Philconsa, former Arroyo administration’s national security adviser Norberto Gonzales, and former Senator Francisco Tatad, have asked the highest court to declare unconstitutional two agreements signed by Manila and the MILF.

In a statement, Sr. Noel said the prime movers of the petition belonged to National Transformation Council (NTC), which she considered as anti-President Aquino.

The FAB was signed by both government and MILF panels in 2012 while the CAB was forged in March last year.