Duterte may immediately submit to Congress draft BBL

July 11, 2017

President Rodrigo Duterte may immediately forward to Congress the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law and allow lawmakers to review it, an official said on Tuesday. This as Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza expressed belief that the revised BBL draft did not include previous provisions, which were deemed unconstitutional by some legislators. "We are confident that the BTC (Bangsamoro Transition Commission) that crafted the new one must have taken into account the failures of the past, learning from the past lessons," he said in a press briefing in Malacanang. Dureza admitted he has yet to see the copy of the new draft prepared by the 21-man Moro Islamic Liberation Front-led BTC. According to Dureza, the BTC will turn over the new draft to the Palace on July 17. Once the draft document is submitted to the Office of the President, he said his recommendation would be to forward it to Congress immediately contrary to what the Aquino administration did that it took months before the document reached both Houses. "Our recommendation is that as soon as the President receives it, he will turn it over to the Speaker of the House and both the Senate President," he said. However, he added, "the president can do whatever he pleases." Aside from the draft BBL, the government is waiting for the inputs of the faction of Nur Misuari's Moro National Liberation Front in the Bangsamoro bill to be passed by Congress. "We have also opened up a separate track with Chairman Misuari. Hopefully, they will be able to come up with their own recommendations on what could be their amendment to the present Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao or under Republic Act 9054. The convergence with the MNLF track and the MILF track hopefully will happen in Congress," Dureza said. He said his office would ask the president to certify as urgent the passage of the bill. "As far as OPAPP is concerned, we will recommend that it will be certified as an urgent bill. But as you know very well, the president makes the final call," he said. The enactment of a Bangsamoro law is part of the comprehensive peace agreement signed by the previous administration with the MILF. (Celerina Monte/DMS)