More livelihood, infra for Isabela City if it joins BBL —Zubiri

BASILAN —The city of Isabela will benefit from more livelihood projects and tourism infrastructure if it would vote to join the envisioned Bangsamoro region, Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri said Friday.

When the province of Basilan voted to join the Expanded ARMM Law in 2001, only Isabela City opted to remain part of the Zamboanga Peninsula region.

“I’m hoping makita nila yung merits ng bagong BTC (Bangsamoro Transition Comimssion) version ng BBL, which has so many advantages… Dito sa pondo lamang, hindi na kailangan pumunta ng Manila ang mga taga Isabela City para humingi ng pondo because they will be well-represented by the Bangsamoro parliament,” Zubiri said.

“[The BBL will result in] more projects, more livelihood, more programs in terms of poverty reduction, more tourism infrastructure…Napakaganda ng benefits. I don’t see any benefit that will be disadvantageous to the people,” he said.

Zubiri has committed to pass the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) by March 22 in the Senate. The counterpart version in the House of Representatives however is still in the committee level.

Zubiri appealed to the lower house to “fast track” its version of the measure so that the plebiscite on the BBL can be submitted for approval.

Zubiri, along with other senators led by Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, went to Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi to conduct public consultations on the BBL.

BTC chairman Ghazali Jaafar said the Moro people are optimistic about the passage of the BBL, the legal framework of the years-long peace negotiations, under President Rodrigo Duterte’s term.

“Ang feeling ng nakakarami, a greater majority of Muslims in the Philippines, parang ngayon lang nagkaron ng pangulo na talagang desidido sa kanyang commitment sa Muslims,” Jaafar said.

ARMM Govenor Mujiv Hataman, for his part, urged residents here to vote in favor of the BBL in a plebiscite, saying the law will grant the envisioned region its fiscal autonomy.

“Ibig sabihin nito, hindi mo na kailangan manglimos. Hindi na kailangan ng national line agency, dahil ang pondo automatically sa Bangsamoro parliament ma-a-appropriate,” Hataman said.

Hataman said however that a BBL less than the “failed” ARMM should be rejected by the people.

“Ibang usapin kung babaguhin ng Senado at Kongreso at mas mababa sa ARMM. Ako na mismo magsasabi, dapat sama-sama tayo, hindi natin tatanggapin ang BBL na mas mababa sa ARMM,” he said.

Pimentel however said that “it’s too much to expect” that the draft BBL version submitted by the BTC will be approved by Congress as is. —NB, GMA News