Senator Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. questioned yesterday the sincerity of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in entering into a peace agreement with the Philippine government after its chief negotiator, Mohagher Iqbal, admitted to using an “alias” or assumed name.
“This is entirely the first peace agreement in the world which a government negotiated with a fictitious person,” Marcos, chairman of the Senate local governments committee, said.
“Even that negotiated by other governments, those rebel leaders used their real names when signing peace pacts. This mocks the entire process and puts in serious question the very question, the very sincerity of the rebels to enter into peace with us,” Marcos said.
But Justice Secretary Leila de Lima defended Iqbal for using an alias when he signed, in behalf of the rebel group, a peace agreement with the government.
De Lima sees no reason why the peace agreement between the MILF and the Government of the Philippines (GPH) should be invalidated or scrapped just because Iqbal admitted using an alias when he signed both the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro and the Comprehensive Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro in 2012 and in 2014, respectively.
She pointed out that it is a common practice for rebel leaders to use a “nom de guerre” when they need to participate in peace negotiations as a security precaution.
While she agrees that the use of fictitious name is being prohibited under Article 178 of the Revised Penal Code, De Lima maintains that it is only applicable when the person is using an alias to commit a crime.
She cited as an example the case of former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, wherein the Commission on Elections (Comelec) allowed the ex-chief executive to use “Erap” in his campaigns or when people voted for him.
Manila Bulletin
