MANILA: Malacañang yesterday doused speculations that talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (Milf) on the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law are on the verge of collapse.
Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr appealed to all sectors not to spread baseless reports that might lead to conflict.
Coloma stressed both sides remain determined to come up with a common draft.
He explained there could be no radical provisions in the draft that would violate the Constitution and require Charter change.
Coloma said no one should sow doubt at this time when there were hurdles to overcome to finally bring lasting peace to Mindanao.
He said government chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer had declared that both the government and the Milf would endeavour to have an acceptable draft.
Asked if there would be a need to change the Constitution to accommodate the demands of the Milf, Coloma said both sides were working on finding a common ground and not concentrating on areas that were unacceptable to both panels.
The government and the Milf last March signed the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro seeking an end to armed conflict in Mindanao.
Both sides are currently ironing out a draft bill of the Bangsamoro Basic Law before it is submitted to Congress.
The government originally planned to endorse the draft law to Congress in May but the deadline was not met.
The Milf previously said the Constitution has to be amended to finally put to rest the Mindanao conflict, an opinion not shared by the government.
Differing views between the two panels have delayed the submission of the draft law to Congress.
Malacañang hopes that once the draft bill is passed and becomes a law, there would be enough time to hold a plebiscite and organize the Bangsamoro Transition Authority.
The Bangsamoro Transitional Authority will govern until the election of the first official leaders of the Bangsamoro political entity in 2016.
Milf chief negotiator Mohaqher Iqbal said they could not accept the proposed draft law of the government, as they would “lose face if we agree to this.”
“Their version clearly departed from the letter and spirit of the peace agreement, which was the basis in crafting the proposed law,” he said. Iqbal added about 70 percent of the nearly 100-page draft Bangsamoro law was either deleted or revised by Aquino’s lawyers who reviewed the document for two months after it was submitted in late April for vetting.
Under the pact, Milf agreed to disband its guerrilla force and rebuild communities in exchange for wider powers to control the region’s economy and society.
The Philippine star
