Senator Zubiri: ‘BOL went through the wringer in Senate’
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Tue, 12 Feb 2019 16:41:01 +0000
THIS is in connection with The Manila Times Editorial of Feb. 1, 2019 (“Lasting peace beyond talk of BOL vote success”).
I take exception to the claim made in your editorial which said, “Unlike the senators of the previous Congress, who conducted long consultations with the Muslim and indigenous communities in the South to craft a proper law, Zubiri steered the BOL through the chamber with little debate and deliberation.”
It might interest you to know that in legislating important pieces of legislation, especially the priorities set by the President during his State of the Nation Address. Congress, in coordination with the Executive, set timelines in passing such legislative measures. Once a target is set, I usually work within that timeline, such is my work ethic. And in the case of the BOL, I saw to it that we finish as soon as possible, as lives, and the peace and order situation in Muslim Mindanao, were at stake. Restlessness and impatience among some groups within the MILF were growing. The ISIS and Dawlah Islamiyah might capitalize on this situation and encourage these groups within MILF to sympathize, if not join them, in establishing a “wilayat” or caliphate in Mindanao. These were some of our considerations in fast-tracking the passage of the BOL, but we did not compromise, and still ensured that each process in the legislative mill was followed.
Thus, I urge your editorial staff to fact-check first before making such an outrageous claim.
The schedule of the committee meetings of the subcommittee on the Bangsamoro Basic Law is posted on the Senate website as well as the deliberations on the plenary. For your information, the original bill filed by Sen. Koko Pimentel 3rd (SBN 1608) and myself (SBN 1646) was a submission of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), which was already a product of a series of consultations they conducted among the stakeholders in Muslim Mindanao. The perceived unconstitutional provisions by the previous Congress were already rectified, if not deleted, based on the BTC’s submission. Nonetheless, as it is a must and our duty, the subcommittee conducted several hearings both in the Senate and in all provinces and key cities in the present ARMM, Maguindanao and Cotabato City (Jan. 25, 2018), Lanao del Sur and Marawi City (Jan. 26, 2018), Jolo in Sulu province and Bongao in Tawi-Tawi (Feb. 8, 2018), Basilan and Isabela City (Feb. 9, 2018), and in Zamboanga City (Feb. 9, 2018). We heard those who supported and opposed the then Bangsamoro Basic Law bill, the civil society, non-governmental organizations, interest groups, business groups, politicians, and even individuals. Our out-of-town committee meetings were among the most attended by the members of the Senate and stakeholders. Though pressed for time in our provincial hearings, we made extra effort to hear everybody as much as we could. Also, at the onset of our committee hearings and upon the motion of Senator Drilon, all the records of the previous Congress on the BBL were deemed part of the proceedings of the BBL in the current Congress, thus the consultations and other discussions in the previous Congress were taken into consideration as well. We also conducted technical working group meetings with several senators, technical staff, and stakeholders to fine-tune the committee report.
In the Senate plenary, we debated on committee report SBN 1717 for almost a month, with several legal minds in the Senate ably assisting me in defending the legality and constitutionality of the bill, among them then Senate President Koko Pimentel, and Senators Sonny Angara, Franklin Drilon and Richard Gordon. We also accepted amendments to the bill to make sure that it would pass the constitutional and legal challenges. The bill passed unanimously on third reading in the Senate (21 in favor, no negative vote and no abstention) with strong bipartisan support, rarely seen in an administration measure and important piece of legislation. For once, all senators agreed with the proposal to push for a just and lasting peace in Muslim Mindanao.
During the bicameral conference committee meetings, we braved the floods and defied work suspensions just to finish within our timetable. In total we conducted six days of bicameral conference committee meetings with an average of 13 hours each day, with some days lasting until the wee hours of the morning. Thus, several of the bicam panelists, both in the House of Representatives and in the Senate, said that the BOL bicam was one of the longest and hardest bicams they had ever participated in. During the bicam conference, we would break into several subcommittees to tackle specific articles, such as the Articles on the Territory, Powers of the BARMM, the Parliament, and the Shari’ah Justice System, to name a few. In the bicam subcommittees, the bill went through some major and perfecting amendments, primarily to satisfy the constitutional test. Before we would take a look at the final text of the bicam report and sign it, the technical staff of both chambers would spend several days consolidating and incorporating the amendments introduced in the bicam and do editorial corrections when necessary.
In short, the BOL went through the wringer in the Senate. To claim otherwise is an insult to the Senate as an institution and a disservice to the efforts put forth by the legislators, technical staff, stakeholders and resource persons in the passage of the BOL.
Fast forward, prior to the plebiscite and upon filing of the overnor of Sulu of his petition before the Supreme Court challenging the constitutionality of the BOL, I issued the following statements to the media, to wit: “It is unfgortunate that the province of Sulu challenged the constitutionality of the BOL, but it is well within their rights to do so. I truly believe though that the Organic Law that we passed can stand the test of constitutionality after careful scrutiny done by the Senate’s best legal minds and with consultations done with eminent constitutionalists and former chief justices and justices of the Supreme Court. We hope that our honorable justices of the Supreme Court can look at this law as an out-of-the-box solution for a lasting peace in Mindanao within the framework of the Constitution. As its principal sponsor and author, I will adhere to the wisdom of the high court as the final arbiter on whether the BOL will pass the test of constitutionality once and for all so we can proceed to a just and lasting peace in Mindanao and in the Philippines.”
Prior to the conduct of the plebiscite, when the Supreme Court did not issue a temporary restraining order (TRO), I issued another statement, which read: “I laud and thank the Supreme Court on their decision not to grant a TRO on the plebiscite for the Bangsamoro Organic Law. This will pave the way for a smooth and orderly plebiscite that I believe will usher in the peace and prosperity that we sorely need in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. I, together with my colleagues in the Senate and House of Representatives who voted almost unanimously for its approval, believe in the BOL’s constitutionality as provided for under Article 10 Section 18 of the Constitution, and after almost a year of consultations and deliberations on the constitutionality of the measure. We trust the Office of the Solicitor General to defend our measure on the cases pending with the Supreme Court and that we, legislators, are willing to lend a helping hand to strengthen our case for the BOL.”
Post–BOL plebiscite, part of my official statement read: “I am appealing to the honorable magistrates of the highest court of the land to hopefully be liberal in their discussions on the BOL and to consider the measure as an instrument of peace for our Muslim brothers and sisters. We appeal as well to all parties including those who opposed the measure to give this Organic Law a chance to uplift the lives of our Muslim brothers and sisters, after decades-long fighting and the deaths of more than 120,000 people due to the never-ending conflicts with the government and the secessionist groups. With the passage of the BOL, we were elated by the statements of the largest secessionist group, the MILF, that the war is finally over and that we can proceed now with the smooth transition of combatants to social and political workers and the quick decommissioning of their firearms. Peace and prosperity in Mindanao can only mean one thing and that is peace and prosperity for the whole nation.”
Therefore, these official statements contradict what you said that I asked the Supreme Court to dismiss the legal questions and forego constitutional discussions even after an overwhelming “yes” vote in the plebiscite. My official statements will bear the truth on that matter.
Sen. Juan Miguel F. Zubiri
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