President Benigno S. Aquino III during the Multimedia Forum with Inquirer editors, columnists, and reporters on Tuesday (September 8) at the Inquirer office in Makati. (Photo by Joseph Vidal / Malacañang Photo Bureau)
MANILA, Philippines — President Benigno Aquino III has addressed public fears of a possible war if the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law is not passed under his administration.
Aquino said there is no indication from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to re-engage in a bloody conflict with the government over the supposed non-passage of the BBL.
“I don’t submit to the premise that war will break out. I don’t think there is any interest from the major players to re-engage in a bloody conflict. Having said that, there will be the spoilers who will want to exploit the current difficulties to show that their avowed aims of gaining what they want through violent means is the only way to go about it.”
Malacañang continues to coordinate with both the senate president and speaker of the house on the timely passage of the BBL.
The proposed law is still pending at the house plenary.
“We will continue to lobby with members of congress to pass the law during our watch and pass it at the earliest possible time so that the new mode of governance will have the maximum time to show the effectivity or the efficacy of this new mode of governance,” said the President.
“Pwede naman akong mag-join ng bandwagon and say na, tsaka nalang ang BBL, pero naniniwala ba ako na ang pag-aantala ng BBL, makakatulong kanino man? Hindi eh. Solitary voice ako.”
(I can always join the bandwagon and say, let’s postpone the BBL, but I do believe postponing it will not be advantageous and helpful to anybody. It’s a solitary voice.)
Aquino did not drop names on who should be blamed for delays in the passage of the BBL.
Instead, the president said he will leave it up to the Filipino people to gauge the merit or lack of it in next year’s polls.
Furthermore, Aquino asked everyone to take into consideration the importance of attaining long-lasting peace, not just in Mindanao, but in the country, as a whole. (BIANCA DAVA / UNTV News)
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