By GENALYN KABILING
A new draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) will be finally submitted to President Duterte next Monday for his review, Presidential adviser on the peace process Jesus Dureza announced yesterday.
Dureza said he would recommend to the President to certify the proposed Bangsamoro measure as urgent for its passage in Congress.
The document was crafted and completed by the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) after months of work. The commission is composed of representatives from the government, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).
“The turnover of the output of the BTC will happen at 5:30 in the afternoon of July 17 here in the Palace. The BTC will turnover to the President the copy of their work that had been done over the past few months,” Dureza said in a Palace news conference. “We are confident that the BTC that crafted the new one must have taken into account the failures of the past, learning from the past lessons.”
Dureza said the President could review and give inputs on the draft BBL or immediately transmit the bill to Congress for deliberation.
“The President’s decision will come only when both would pass a bill into law and he will be asked either to approve it or veto it. That is the point of touch for the President. But may I say again ha, recommendation lang namin ‘yan.
Baka the President may have his own wisdom of doing what he thinks is best under the circumstances,” he said.
The new BBL proposal replaces the first draft that failed to get the nod of Congress due to alleged unconstitutional provinces during the previous administration.
The measure seeks to create a new autonomous entity called Bangsamoro with larger territory and powers replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. It will be the legal instrument that will implement the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsa-moro inked by the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.