MANILA, Philippines - The Aquino administration should come up with a worst case scenario in the event that the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is not completed within its term, former President Fidel Ramos said on Wednesday.
Ramos said crafting a worst case scenario would ensure continuity in the peace process even after President Aquino steps down from office in 2016.
“The leadership, whoever they are, including potential leaders, must start thinking of a worst case scenario because the peace process might not end within the term of President Aquino,” Ramos said.
“Somebody should be planning something like this so that even if there is a new administration and peace process is not completed, we will have continuity,” he added.
Ramos said among the possibilities that the government should brace for are the non-passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) and incidents similar to the January 25 Mamasapano tragedy, which left 44 police commandos and 18 MILF members dead.
The BBL will create a new Bangsamoro region that will enjoy greater political and economic powers. The measure is included in the list of Malacanang’s priority bills.
Ramos said the deliberations on the proposed BBL would take a lot of time. He noted that after the House of Representatives and the Senate pass their version of the BBL, the measure would have to be reconciled in a bicameral conference committee.
The proposed law will then be submitted for the approval of voters through a plebiscite.
"For me, the most difficult portion is the plebiscite. Is the plebiscite confined to people concerned in the proposed BBL or nationwide?” Ramos said.
Ramos said House ad hoc BBL Committee chairman Rep. Rufus Rodriguez had predicted “many long arduous debates” on the measure, which would implement the peace agreement signed by the government and MILF last year.
The former president also called for the creation of an agency that would pursue the gains achieved under the Aquino administration. He said under the current set-up, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) is a “creation of each administration.”
The next administration can reverse the gains that its predecessor has achieved, Ramos said.
“You need a more permanent agency instead of just the negotiating panel under the OPAPP to do continuous peace process under the new administration next to this one,” he added
Ramos said the government panel should consult with people who really know the situation on the ground as they are dealing with “battle-hardened warriors and veterans” of the MILF who are “very savvy and wise.”
“I’m not saying the ladies there in OPAPP negotiating panel are not good. They are good but they must realize they do not know everything. Nobody knows everything about a particular matter,” the former president said.
Philstar
