Robredo on BBL defeat: Don’t let sadness overcome us

Vice-presidential candidate Leni Robredo called for calm as anger and sadness overwhelmed the advocates for the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) over Congress’ failure to pass the measure.

“My husband died without fulfilling his dream but we are still here and still strong. I know what you feel about the BBL,” she told a forum yesterday.

She took note of the impassioned privilege speech that Rep. Pangalian Balindong delivered last week in which the Mindanao lawmaker publicly mourned the demise of the bill seeking to give minority Muslims a wider territory to exercise their autonomy.

“I also felt that way when my husband died but we should not let sadness overcome us because we still have a long way to go,” Robredo said in Filipino.

But she said people should keep one thing in mind. “If there are obstacles [thrown] your way, keep stepping forward. Let us not walk backward,” she said.

Congress adjourned for the election campaign period late Wednesday, effectively killing hopes for the BBL, a key component of the peace agreement that the Aquino government signed with the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the larger of the several Muslim insurgencies in the south.

“Fifty-one public hearings, 200 hours of committee level debates and 8 months of consultations are all put to waste—thrown into the abyss of uncertainty and darkness.  This is the lowest and saddest day of my legislative work,” Balindong said.

Robredo said BBL advocates and proponents should not direct their anger towards the critics of the BBL.

“Perhaps we have expectations that are not fulfilled, dreams that are not achieved. But we must not use it as a reason to get angry,” she said.

“We must look at things that we accomplished,” she said.

Robredo said the peace process with the Moro rebels in Mindanao was an issue that was close to her heart.

She recalled how she actually needed a colleague’s help to join the ad hoc committee deliberations on the BBL.

“This issue was very important to my husband, so I looked for someone who would commission me. I could not vote because I was not a member of the committee,” Robredo said.

“However, I was criticized when I voted [for it]. They told me that I did not give justice to the death of my husband. They assumed that my husband was not working for peace in Mindanao,” she said.