MANILA -- Quezon City 2nd District Rep. Winston Castelo on Tuesday said the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) should be passed into law before the third State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday (July 23).
The House of Representatives and the Senate will have their second joint regular session for the 17th Congress on Monday where President Duterte will deliver his third SONA.
In an ambush interview, Castelo said “dapat palakasin (ang autonomy ng region) ng Bicameral Conference Committee para tapusin ang Bangsamoro Basic Law o BBL bago ang State of the Nation Address o SONA sa Hulyo 23 (The Bicameral Conference Committee should strengthen the autonomy of the region to finish the BBL before the SONA on July 23)."
"Ito’y matapos ang pag-apruba sa 88 porsyento at 87 porsyento ng trust rating ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte sa survey kamakailan ng Pulse Asia (this was after the approval in the 88 percent and 87 percent of the trust rating of President Rodrigo Duterte in the recent Pulse Asia survey)," he added.
He noted that the huge support for the President should be taken into consideration to push for the approval of the proposed law for autonomy, which the past administration failed to do despite the determination to pass such a law.
Castelo, chairman of the House Committee on Metropolitan Manila Development, stressed that the conduct of the mid-term election next year will pave the way for the enactment into law of some proposed measures, including the BBL.
The mid-term elections are slated to be held on the second Monday of May in 2019.
Aside from the BBL, Castelo said the House of Representatives and the Senate are also facing a challenge to clarify the shift to a federal form of government, which is also expected to be taken up in the next Congress.
He added the enactment into law of the BBL would help President Duterte to resolve the problem in Mindanao, which is a priority of his administration.
“Ang kapayapaan sa Mindanao ay hindi lamang para sa seguridad ng bansa bagkus, para isulong ang ating ekonomiya, lalo na Mindanao (The peace in Mindanao is not only for the security of the country, but rather, to propel the economy, especially in Mindanao),” Castelo said. (PNA)
