Gov't execs hope BBL gets Congress' okay

MANILA - Government officials, who have been in Mindanao for quite some time, expressed hope for Congress to pass the new draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) without delay, for the good of the people in Central Mindanao.

The 21-member Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), the body tasked to craft the revised BBL, turned over on Monday the new draft of the BBL before President Rodrigo Duterte at the Heroes Hall in Malaca¤ang Palace.

Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza said he believe that the new draft law is much better than the one submitted to Congress in 2014. He added that Duterte will certify the revised law as urgent before the Congress.

Dureza added that the president will declare the new draft law as a priority measure in his State of the nation address (Sona) on July 24, Monday, as this has been his long standing commitment to the Bangsamoro people.

Bayan Muna partylist representative lawyer Carlos Isagani Zarate, meanwhile, welcomed the new draft of the BBL as a mode to address the historical injustices committed against the Bangsamoro people in Mindanao several years ago.

"The challenge now is in Congress. We have to learn what happened on the BBL submitted to the Congress in 2014," Zarate said, adding the BBL in

the previous administration was described as mangled beyond recognition during the turnover.

To the advocates of the peace process in Congress, Zarate is hoping for their support to pass the law, to also give light to the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) signed by the government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff General Eduardo A¤o also echoed a similar response on the new draft law, saying he finds it acceptable than the previous one. He added that AFP has been looking forward for a lasting peace.