Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
The Mindanao Area Council (MAC), a coalition of six regional councils under the PDP-Laban, is set to hold a general assembly next week to push the national party leadership into revisiting and implementing the party’s constitution and by-laws.
MAC, which comprises of the five regions in Mindanao and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, came up with manifesto with a six-point agenda for consideration of Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, the party’s national president.
The manifesto, an offshoot of the August 24, 2017 meeting of PDP-Laban stalwarts in Tagum City, stressed on the need for discussion of “the problems and issues [of PDP-Laban] and formulate corrective measures.”
The Council, headed by Cesar Cuntapay as president of the regional council for Southern Mindanao, also urges the National Council to grant the regional councils of Mindanao the autonomy to administer the affairs of the party as allowed under the party Charter.
MAC also denounced the mass oath-taking of party applicants without complying with the requirements of the PDP-Laban constitution.
In a statement emailed to reporters, the group also proposed the creation of Committee on Communication and Mass Media to handle the task of ensuring only the dissemination of authentic press items.
Under the present set-up, the MAC region presidents include Cesar Cuntapay, Region XI; Rogelio Garcia, Region XII; Emmanuel Lumanao, Region XIII; Franklin Quijano, Region X; Noli Garcia, Region XI; and Datu Apan Piang, ARMM secretary-general.
Cesar R. Ledesma, one of the party founders, heads the secretariat of the PDP-LABAN Mindanao Area Council.
MAC has also reiterated its pledge to support President Rodrigo Duterte in his advocacy for federalism, the fight against drugs, criminality and corruption and other pro-people initiatives.