Roxas campaigns in Muslim Quiapo

Liberal party presidential candidate Mar Roxas visit the Islamic Center, Manila, the oldest Muslim community in Luzon.
INQUIRER PHOTO/RAFFY LERMA

LIBERAL Party (LP) standard-bearer Mar Roxas Monday took his campaign to a Muslim village in the heart of the nation’s capital located just across Malacañang.

Accompanied by the local candidates of the ruling LP, Roxas visited the Islamic Center in Quiapo, Manila, the oldest Muslim community in Manila.

Wearing his signature yellow campaign shirt, Roxas met with about 500 residents who listened to him as he delivered a 20-minute speech from a makeshift stage.

Roxas, the first of the presidential aspirants to campaign at the Muslim community, greeted his audience in the Maranao dialect, drawing applause and cheers from the residents, most of whom were middle-aged men.

“We often hear that Mindanao is the ‘Land of the Promise.’ But how can we make that promise or dream a reality if war, bombings and violence continue?” Roxas told the crowd.

“We’re fighting for freedom from hunger and freedom from fear. We have already started this more five years ago when daang matuwid (straight path) was started by President Aquino. But we need to continue it to help more of our countrymen,” he said.

Imam Abdul Bashet Marangit, a community leader, said Roxas is the first ever presidential candidate to have visited their neighborhood.

“I think this only showed his (Roxas) genuine care for our Muslim brothers,” he said.

Roxas underscored the importance of concluding a lasting peace agreement with secessionist Muslims in the south to ensure economic progress in Mindanao.

He also disputed claims that the Aquino administration had neglected Mindanao, pointing out that some P260 billion in infrastructure projects were funded by the national government in the region since President Aquino took office in 2010.

Roxas said the amount was more than double the total worth of infrastructure projects in Mindanao during the 12 years of the previous Estrada and Arroyo administrations.

Speaking with reporters, Roxas said his visit “symbolizes the importance we give to attaining peace in Mindanao.”

Under a Roxas presidency, he said the national government would pursue the peace agreement with the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and push for the passage of the scuttled Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

“We will continue talking with (the MILF) to find peace. We will push for a new bill and look for reasons why the BBL was not passed,” he said. With Jani Arnaiz, Inquirer Visayas

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