I wrote this piece as soon as the President finished delivering his third State of the Nation Address. During my interaction with Moro stakeholders, we came up with a bucket list of wishes we hoped the President would include in his SoNA.

Topping the list was the full completion of the peace process, i.e., implementing what has not been implemented — even after the parliamentary election. The peace process with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) is “half-baked” because of the failure of the government to implement some of the terms of the agreement that was inked during the Ramos administration. They wished the peace pact with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) would not suffer the same fate.

The Moros would have welcomed a word from the President about completing or speeding up the decommissioning of the rebels so they could be integrated into the military or police forces to legalize the carrying of their firearms in public.

Right now, the public is bewildered by the existence of two armed forces in the region, one from the rebel MILF and the other the regular defense and peace-keeping force of the state. As we had cautioned before, this could be a flashpoint that might ignite an armed confrontation between them and the private armed groups of politicians.

With the parliamentary election fast approaching, this could lead to a situation where one group (MILF), which has a registered political party, the United Bangsamoro Justice Party, will be in an advantageous position with their armed militia allowed to carry firearms during the campaign and on election day. This column empathizes with the Bangsamoro Governor Caucus which earlier raised the alarm.

But what preoccupies the minds of Maranaw Muslims is the fate of the compensation promised by the government for victims of the 2017 Marawi siege. While the processing of claims and payments is ongoing, the work of the Marawi Compensation Board has been affected by protests about the valuation of damaged properties, which to some appears to be snail-paced and unreasonable.

This prompted the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on Marawi Compensation to propose a Joint Congressional Resolution to amend the law and insert a provision to hasten the processing and justify the adoption of a formula or computation that would increase the values of damaged properties.

The victims wish the Marawi Siege Victims Compensation law will be amended through a Joint Congressional Resolution or by executive fiat. More importantly, however, is the need for an assurance that the budgetary appropriation for the program is sustained. A yearly appropriation is worrisome as it is dependent on uncertain variables. A one-time budget appropriation similar to a block grant would be ideal.

The SoNA was not at all disappointing, however, to the Muslims whose eyes were glued to the live coverage that was sporadically interrupted because of the spotty internet signal in Marawi City.

The President mentioned issues involving the BARMM but in a different light. For clarity we quote the President, viz: “... the BARMM has impressively established the strong foundation for its progressive autonomous foundation. Investments continue to pour into the BARMM (which) increased last year by 140 percent year-on-year. The improved peace and order situation, good governance, not to mention the high hopes and confidence of the people, all contribute to the reasons BARMM’s poverty index has significantly decreased since 2018.”

“In Marawi, the rehabilitation and rebuilding continue, now under the supervision of the Office of the President. Our focus remains on restoring energy, water and livable communities. As of today, all seven inter-governmental mechanisms of the BARMM, as mandated under the Organic Law, have been organized and activated. These will guarantee effective and constant consultations between the Bangsamoro and the national government in the fundamental aspects of governance. Five of the seven essential laws of the BARMM have already been enacted by the BTA parliament. With these inspiring developments, the BARMM appears primed and ready for its regular elections in 2025.”

The TV camera at the SoNA caught Interim Chief Minister Ibrahim Murad smiling. There you are, readers. The wishes of the Muslims were not totally ignored.

amb_mac_lanto@yahoo.com