THE LESSER EVIL: A REACTION PAPER ON THE BBL

(BANGSAMORO BASIC LAW)

By: Almujer U. Ammang

There is one truth in life that is realistically echoed in politics there is nothing in the
world that is certain but change.
House bill no. 4994 otherwise known as the Bangsamoro Basic Law, when passed,
effectively abolishes the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). A switch of power
from one hand to another, the BBL recognizes the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) as the
party in power overthrowing the MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front) who were the
forerunners of the ARMM.

THE BBL FROM A POLITICAL AND LEGAL PERSPECTIVE:

The BBLs primary aim is to promote long-term peace in Mindanao and to ensure the
development and progress in the Bangsamoro region while securing the identity and heritage of
their people. Some would say that the BBL is half-baked considering that there had been no
consultation prior to enactment and ratification.
As mentioned earlier, the BBL is a switch of power from one hand to another. In
Mindanao there are three large groups that control the region. They are the MNLF (Moro
National Liberation Front) the oldest of the three organizations, the MILF (Moro Islamic
Liberation Front) which the MNLF breakaway group and the BIFF (Bangsamoro Islamic
Freedom Fighters) yet another breakaway group of the MILF.
The BBL will place the MILF in a position of power. It is not hard to imagine that this
may cause the ire of the other two groups. It becomes a different story when you come to think
that the other two groups also have supporters and own militia.

WHATS YOURS IS MINE, WHATS MINE IS MINE ALONE:

Under the BBL, the Bangsamoro government shall have exclusive powers over certain
matters in their domain. Some of the subject matters over which the Bangsamoro government
will have exclusive powers which caught my attention are the following:
1. Free ports;
The corrupt practice of some ports and immigrations offices is an open secret to the
public. Having a free port of their own opens the doors to such eventualities. The
possibilities are endless.
2. Islamic banking system;
What better way to control the finances of a government than to control its money?
Surely, creation of its own banking system would create such security. As one popular
banks tagline says, youre in good hands..., rest assured, your money is safe (or not?)
3. Creation of its own GOCCs;
GOCCs or Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations have been in the limelight
for a while now and it is not because they have done well. GOCCs have been the
source of corruption because of their income-generating character.
4. Electricity;
Basically, from what I understand, what the BBL says is that the Bangsamoro will create
its own electricity and provide for the power requirements of the area but it may sell
electricity to other regions.
5. Receipt of grants and donations;
The Bangsamoro may receive and spend grants and donations from others independent
of the central government.
6. Pilgrimage matters;
The Bangsamoro will take care of its own including matters on Muslim pilgrims and
their traditional pilgrimage to Mecca. If something bad happens, well then maybe the
central government can help.
7. Ancestral domain & natural resources;
It may declare and safeguard its own ancestral domain and natural resources. I really
hope that the BBL leaders will be careful regarding this subject matter. The scary thing
about this world is that it is governed by money. To some, money can replace everything.
These natural resources, when exploited, can never be replaced.
8. Declaration of Bangsamoro Holidays;

Fair enough however, on the employers point of view, this can be painful on the issue
of labor and incentives.
9. Expropriation power & eminent domain;
I am afraid of this. This power can easily be abused.
10. Penology and penitentiary
The Bangsamoro may create and manage its own jails. What with the issues concerning
the BJMP nowadays, I wonder how an independent jail management would work.
11. Civil Service
Under the BBL, the Bangsamoro government will have primary authority over its own
officials and employees. Hopefully, it is not something that is prejudicial to non-Muslims.
12. Funding and Infrastructures
Ironically, it is the central government that will provide for the funds to construct and
maintain roads, bridges, irrigation systems and other public infrastructures in the
Mindanao regions.
While not meaning to be distrustful, it may be a point of concern to some that these subject
matters be under the authority and jurisdiction of the Bangsamoro government. It is not
surprising that this will cause the outrage of some. After all, simply put, what the BBL says is
that the Bangsamoro people will benefit from the central government but only the Bangsamoro
will benefit from its own resources. Taxes paid by all Filipino citizens is put to one jar and used
by all Filipino citizens. Bangsamoro people, being Filipino citizens, will benefit from this,
however, others; not being part of the Bangsamoro may not partake of the fruits of their taxes.

The BBL can be a bit confusing. The Philippines has a democratic form of government,
not federalism, nor parliamentary. So how is it that within the Philippine government, there
should exist a pseudo-state that has all the governmental powers as we know it: police power,
power of eminent domain, and power of taxation?
While it may be argued that the Bangsamoro Police force will be under the supervision of
the Philippine National Police, we also know that being armed all their lives, the Moro police
will just be the MILF decommissioned to be recommissioned again this time wearing the
PNP uniform. As mentioned earlier, the Bangsamoro shall have exclusive powers of eminent

domain and shall also exercise the power of taxation so I do not need to expound further on this
point.
As explicitly stated in the draft of the BBL, it is to be a parliamentary form of
government. A government within a government? Is this not unconstitutional?

BRIEF HISTORICAL ROOTS OF BANGSAMORO IN THE PHILIPPINES:

The word bangsa is adapted from an old Malay word meaning nation while moro is a
popular collective term used to address ethnic Muslim groups in the Philippines. Roughly,
bangsamoro translates to a nation of Muslims. I am part of this nation.
In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the Moro people remained separated from the
mainstream Philippine society, due to social and political factors. The word Moro was a term
used in the sixteenth century by Spanish colonizers in reference to the shared Islamic beliefs
between the tribal groups in the Philippines and the ethnically distinct Moors of Spain. Moro
culture is very Malay-influenced. Islam is the most dominant influence on the Moro culture.
There are at least ten ethnic groups comprising of Muslims in the Philippines; all
descended from the same Austronesian people (Malayo-Polynesian) that migrated from
Taiwan and populated the regions of the Philippines, Southeast Asia, the Pacific islands and
Madagascar. Three of these groups make up the majority of these tribes. They are
the Maguindanaoan of North

Cotabato, Sultan

Kudarat and Maguindanao provinces,

the

Maranao of the Lanao provinces and the Tausug of the Sulu Archipelago.
Smaller groups include the Banguingui, Samal and the Bajau of the Sulu Archipelago; the
Yakan of Basilan and Zamboanga

del

Sur,

the Illanun of Lanao

provinces and

Davao

and Sangir of Davao, the Molbog of southern Palawan and the Jama Mapuns of Cagayan de
Tawi-Tawi Island. It is said that Moro groups are not united and they lack solidarity because each
group is proud of their culture, identity, language and religion.

The arrival of Muslim missionaries from Persian Gulf, including one, Makhdum Karim,
in Tawi-Tawi initiated the conversion of the native population in the region into Islam. Trade
between Malaysia and Indonesia helped establish the Islamic religion in the southern Philippines.
The introduction of Islam led to the creation of Sultanates. This included the sultanates of
Buayan, Maguindanao and Sulu, which is considered the oldest Muslim government in the
country.
Sulu and other Muslim sultanates were introduced to Islam by Chinese Muslims,
Persians, and Arabs. Chinese Muslim merchants participated in the local commerce, and the
Sultanate had diplomatic relations with Ming Dynasty China, being involved in the tribute
system, the Sulu leader Paduka Batara and his sons moved to China, where he died and Chinese
Muslims brought up his sons.
The inhabitants of pre-Hispanic Philippines practiced Islam and Animism.
The Malay kingdoms interacted, and traded with various tribes throughout the islands, governing
several territories ruled by chieftains called Rajah, Datu and Sultan.

THE BBL FROM A MOROS PERSPECTIVE:

I was born in Panglima Estino in the province of Sulu. I lived in a real-life Clash of Clan
(COC) setting. I lost my father to a clan war when I was only two years old after which, I was
left to the care of my maternal grandparents hen my mother went away to work abroad. As a
young Muslim growing up in a typical Islamic Community and raised by a traditional Tausug
couple, clan wars and the sound of gunfire and explosions are a normal part of daily life. I can
vividly remember my grandmother and me, along with other families, evacuating in dry
riverbeds along with the livestock whenever there is an ongoing war and my grandfather was a
combatant.
The movie Bagong Buwan which stars Cesar Montano is an accurate depiction of the
actual situation in rural Mindanao.

The noble pursuit to achieve a lasting peace in Mindanao is not an easy task. Many have
tried, and failed. Peace is a long journey that requires patience and dedication of all concerned
and affected sectors, hence, the need for a carefully crafted peace process and the peoples
collective and meaningful participation in finding resolution to and addressing the roots of the
conflict.
There is the fiasco of an all-out-war which effectively obliterated the rebel groups
along with countless civilians. Mindanaos armed conflict has cost us a lot. It has directly
affected not just Mindanao but the entire country by discouraging foreign and local investments,
while also compromising the nations coffers with the previous governments spending more on
war than basic social services. Many of the victims are civilians who are either displaced from
their communities or killed in cross fires. Even then, some would say, why cant they just leave
the dang place? I ask you is it not almost impossible to ask informal settlers to leave their
homes even though they have no right to be there? How can you ask then, these people to leave
their homes when those lands were part of their heritage and have been with their families for
generations?

CHOOSING THE LESSER EVIL:

While it is true that the BBL may cause more harm in its initial takeoff when passed, still,
it is better than nothing. There are many who disapprove of it and say that it is either half-baked
or unconstitutional or many other things. The question is, have they done anything to stop the
chaos?
In favoring the MILF, it is the likely possibility that the MNLF and the BIFF will be
disgruntled, which we have dealt with for more years than I can care to count - but then, maybe,
what if, if we let them resolve their own conflict, maybe this could lead to their ultimate unity as
one nation?
Having been born a Muslim, I fully understand the Bangsamoro culture and beliefs and I
agree with the Aquinos government that we must let the Bangsamoro govern their own land and
people with respect to their traditions, religious beliefs and culture. It is always practical to elect

a leader who knows his constituents and is one of them. Who better to lead the Bangsamoro than
one of their own?
However, living now as a police officer, in effect as a representative of the central
government, in a predominantly non-Muslim community for almost all my adult life, I can also
understand the sentiments of a non-Muslim.
The Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), when passed, may not be the most ideal law but it is
good enough for starters, considering that in the past, what our legislators have done amounted to
nothing more than talks. We all got tired of their peace talks that have brought about anything but
peace. We need to act and we need to act now. People are dying and mistrust and skepticism will
not get us anywhere.
The BBL may not be the law that will end the war and chaos in Mindanao. However, this
law may well be the instrument that will pave the way for a united and more peaceful Mindanao.