Maguindanao Governor Bai Mariam Sangki- Mangudadatu (Maguindanao PIO file photo)
COTABATO CITY – The Maguindanao provincial government and its elected officials are supporting the proposed anti-terrorism act of 2020, Governor Bai Mariam Sangki-Mangudadatu said on Saturday.
“Maguindanao and its people are one of the most affected areas in the country due to terrorism and because of that, it is but right and logical that its officials and its inhabitants will support the proposed anti-terrorism act,” Mangudadatu said in a statement.
She added that Maguindanaons must support the proposed measure to put an end to fear and anxiety that have been hounding the province for so long.
She said it is a known among the more than 800,000 people living in Maguindanao’s 36 municipalities that the province had been the hotbed of terrorism.
“The passage of this bill is one major step to ensure the safety of the people of Maguindanao where foreign terrorists once thrive,” the governor said.
It was in Maguindanao that Zulkifli bin Hir hid and provided bomb-making training to local jihadists who eventually become members of Islamic State-linked Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF).
The Malaysian national, also known as “Marwan”, was one of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) most wanted terrorists.
The FBI offered a USD5-million reward for his capture.
The government forces located Marwan in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on January 25, 2015, but his death also cost the lives of 44 elite police force members, 18 Moro rebels and five civilians.
Aside from Marwan, there were other suspected foreign terrorists hiding in Mindanao, including Maguindanao.
“I hope the good intention of this bill will prevail so that Maguindanaons will be safe and that fear will cease hounding them,” Mangudadatu said.
The governor is also praying that the bill, once signed into law, will be fair and implementers will be guided by God to uphold human rights and justice.
She also appealed to other local government executives of Maguindanao to come up with a statement of support for the anti-terrorism bill.
Earlier, the local government of Rajah Buayan, headed by Mayor Yacob Ampatuan, passed a manifesto of support to the passage of the anti-terror bill. (PNA)
