Marcos presents ‘improved’ BBL version on Senate floor

SENATOR Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. attacked President Benigno Aquino III and the government’s peace panel when he presented on the Senate floor on Wednesday his “improved” version of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

In his sponsorship speech of Senate No. 2894 entitled “An Act Providing for the Basic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region,” Marcos noted what he described as “unacceptable” and “harmful” conditions and provisions of the BBL that he said the President and the government’s peace panel accepted “in their haste to earn accolades for their work.”

“I accepted the challenge and made a commitment to correct the many flaws of the original Bangsamoro Basic Law because I believe in peace. I recognize, as our people do, that this law is necessary to achieve that peace,” said the senator, who led the BBL deliberations in the Senate as chairman of the committee on local government.

“But it can only meet that sacred goal if it is a law that is constitutional, a law that is all-embracing, inclusive for all who have been tragically affected by the conflict as well as every Filipino, a law that honors our heroes and what they fought and died for, he said.

And so Marcos said he proceeded with his own version of the bill “carefully, by being inclusive and inviting the consultation of every affected stakeholder, and making sure that it would be in accordance with the laws of the land and “the desire of every Filipino for peace.”

“We proceeded in this careful, thoughtful way because unfortunately, Mr. President, our leadership did not. From the very beginning, the Bangsamoro Basic Law and the Comprehensive Agreement from which it was derived were not inclusive,” he said.

“From secret meetings in hotel rooms held in faraway places at the sole discretion of the President of the Republic of the Philippines and disregarded the Constitutional Authority of this very body in deliberating treaties; to the hasty accession to every demand of the MILF by our negotiating team; to the exclusion of all the stakeholders, the conducts of talks and creation of the Bangsamoro Basic Law in its original version only served to raise fears and suspicions,” he added.

Marcos said many people even accused the government of “selling out” and “putting the peaceful integrity of our republic at grave risk.” Some, he said, even characterized the conduct of these leaders as “ treasonous.”

What made matters worse, he said, was the participation of Malaysia in the peace talks as facilitator and moderator since “it is not a disinterested party.”

“Obviously, I would not have chosen Malaysia to assist us in this all-important endeavor. I suspect many of you would not have done so either. That, however, cannot be undone now,” said the senator.

“But what can be undone, and what we have done, are the unacceptable and harmful conditions and provisions our President and our negotiating team thoughtlessly accepted in their haste to earn accolades for their work.”

Marcos said his version of the BBL protects national interest and reserves to the national government its powers enshrined under our Constitution.

At the same time, he said his version of the bill fulfills, to the extent that the Constitution and national sovereignty can allow, the desires of the Bangsamoro people for meaningful autonomy.

He said his committee also adhered to several basic principles in crafting the substitute measure. First among these basic principles is the primacy of the Constitution.

Since every citizen is mandated to obey and defend the Constitution, Marcos said his committee decided to “strike down any provision that is clearly in conflict with its letter and spirit.”

Marcos said another important principle, based on the lessons learned through the heroism of the SAF (Special Action Force) 44, was that peace and order in the autonomous region should remain to be the primary responsibility of the national government, through the Philippine National Police.

His committee, he said, also deemed it essential, given the history of secessionist armed struggle in Mindanao, that the proposed BBL will never be a vehicle for the establishment of an independent state.