YOUTH POWER. Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar (2nd from left) meets with Sangguniang Kabataan officials of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in Cotabato in this August 2020 photo. He lauded their efforts in Covid-19 response and asked for their help in fighting fake news. (Photo courtesy of Midsayap-PIO)
MANILA – The Duterte administration has notable achievements in terms of peace and order that include the creation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar said on Friday.
He said it will be one of the legacies of President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Ilang administrasyon yan na ipinaglaban pero ngayon lang sa panahon ni Presidente Duterte naging batas (Many administrations have pushed for it, but it was only now during the term of President Duterte that it became a law),” he said in a news release.
Through Republic Act 11054, or the Bangsamoro Organic Law signed on July 2018, the Muslim community in Mindanao was given the autonomy to pursue its political, economic, social, and cultural development in its jurisdiction.
The legislation culminates the peace agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Apart from this, the administration’s anti-criminality and anti-illegal drugs campaigns have pushed back the number of crimes reported across the country.
Andanar said the crime volume in the country during the administration of President Duterte dropped by at least 64 percent.
To date, more than PHP50 billion worth of illegal drugs have been seized, more than 700 drug dens have been dismantled, and more than 1.2 million drug dependents voluntarily surrendered themselves to be rehabilitated.
“Mas panatag na ang loob ng ating mga kababayan na maglakad pauwi dahil sila ay kumbinsido na hindi sila mabibiktima ng krimen. Mayroon na pong (Our countrymen are more at ease, that they can walk home knowing they will not be victims of crime. There is) law and order,” he said.
The government also reported significant strides in terms of anti-insurgency bid in conflict-affected areas in the countryside through the creation of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
Andanar cited more than 18,000 rebels have surrendered because of the whole-of-nation approach, which has succeeded in convincing rebels to give up the armed struggle as there are readily available programs and projects that will help them reintegrate into communities.
The Anti-Terrorism Act was likewise signed by President Duterte on July 2020 to give more teeth in curbing threats and acts of terrorism. (PR)
