Peace talks to fail with Deles, says Chiz

The peace negotiations are bound to fail if presidential adviser on the peace process Teresita "Ging" Deles will not change her attitude, Senator Francis “Chiz" Escudero said Tuesday. "It’s the President’s choice. If he’s using her as the pillar for peace initiatives in Mindanao, then it’s doomed to fail if she keeps on talking and acting this way," Escudero told reporters in an interview. The senator issued the statement after the House of Representatives adopted a resolution calling for the resignation of Deles for her alleged high-handed attitude toward Lanao del Norte Rep. Aliah Dimaporo. Lawmakers agreed to send a copy of the adopted resolution to President Benigno Simeon Aquino III. The resolution claims that Deles allegedly said the problem with Muslim legislators is that they are mostly new and do not understand how the process works, while she has been working on the peace issue for a long time. On the other hand, Deles, who also held the same position under the Arroyo administration until she resigned in 2005, belied giving such high-handed treatment. Her colleagues in civil society groups have issued statements defending Deles. Escudero said the resolution serves as a signal to Deles about how she can achieve peace in Mindanao. "I think this should be a wake-up call that arrogance will take her nowhere and perhaps humility can and will," he said. "If she talks this way to her counterparts from the rebel group side, you think she can actually achieve peace? I don’t think so," Escudero added. President Aquino has expressed continued support for Deles, a longtime advocate of the peace process, in the wake of the resolution. "The President is standing by Secretary Deles. He has full confidence in Secretary Ging Deles," Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda told reporters Tuesday. MILF: Settle dispute soon Meanwhile, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is encouraging lawmakers and Deles to settle their word war soonest, even as it kept its distance from the row. MILF peace panel chairman Mohagher Iqbal said Deles’ continued clash with lawmakers will hamper her effectiveness in the negotiations. "It is an internal problem in the government and we do not want to interfere, except this little bit of positive encouragement," Iqbal said in an interview on RMN-dxMY in Cotabato City. Excerpts of the interview were posted Tuesday afternoon on the MILF website. - KBK, GMANews.TV