Lanao lawmaker: Duterte’s call for Mindanao secession threatens the Philippines

Former president Rodrigo Duterte's call for the separation of Mindanao threatens the country, a Mindanao congressman warned Tuesday.

Duterte has called for secession, saying it would be a legal process and does not mean armed struggle.

“Yes, this is a democratic country, anybody can say their piece if you are satisfied or frustrated with your government, but when you discuss secession, you are talking about not only disenfranchsing certain areas from the Philippines. You are actually threatening our territory,” Lanao del Sur Representative Zia Alonto Adiong said in a press conference.

“Kami ang nakarinig ng putukan, kami ang nakakita sino ang namatay. Namatayan ako ng kamag-anak. [We are the ones hearing the explosions. We are the ones who see people die. I have lost family members.] We should not use independence or the issue on secession of Mindanao as a political slogan. We should not use that loosely in order to express our dismay politically. You are threatening the geographical composition of the Philippines and our existing institutions, which are very much working,” he said.

The decades-old armed conflict in Mindanao has killed tens of thousands of people. In 2019, the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao was established, a region which enjoys land and water jurisdiction, fiscal autonomy, and an increased share in national government resources, among others.

“This issue of secession has killed more than a thousand great men.  Let’s put it to rest. Let us not add insult to the memories of those who are fallen, and those our troops who have sacrificed their lives in order to protect the Philippines,” Adiong added.

“The least we can do is to honor their memories and keep this country intact,” he said.

The press conference included two legislators from Luzon: Jeff Khonghun of Zambales and Inno Dy of Isabela.

Khonghun said secession calls should not be based on a whim.

“It cannot be the case that just because you are opposed to something, you will call for the dismemberment of our country. With all due respect, during President Duterte’s time, there were quarters who were not in agreement with him, but they did not reach the point of calling for a secession,” he said.

“I hope such calls would stop,” Khonghun added.

Dy, in closing, said calling for such discord won’t do the country any good.

“These calls should stop for the sake of our country,” Dy added. — BM, GMA Integrated News