Bangsamoro

What  we  need  to  know  about  the  

"the  President’s  power  to  conduct  peace  negotiations is  implicitly  included  in  her  powers  as  Chief  Executive  and  Commander-­‐in-­‐Chief.  As  Chief  Executive,  the  President  has  the  general  responsibility  to  promote  public  peace,  and  as  Commander-­‐in-­‐Chief,  she  has  the  more  specific  duty  to  prevent  and  suppress  rebellion  and  lawless  violence.”  -­‐ Province  of  North  Cotabato  v.  GRP  Panel (G.R.  No.  183591,  October  14,  2008)

The  President’s  authority  to  conduct  peace  negotiations

What  is  the  “Bangsamoro”?

• Identity or  the  Bangsamoro  People

• Political  entity or  the  Bangsamoro that  will  replace  the  ARMM

• Governmentor  the  Bangsamoro  Government  that  will  replace  the  ARMM  Regional  Government

1.  The  Bangsamoro  does  not  form  a  separate  state

• BBL:  Art  III,  Sec.  1.  “…  The  Bangsamoro  shall  remain  a  part  of  the  Philippines.”

• 1987  Constitution:  Art  X,  Sec.  15.  “There  shall  be  created  autonomous  regions  in  Muslim  Mindanao and  in  the  Cordilleras  consisting  of  provinces,  cities,  municipalities,  and  geographical  areas  sharing  common  and  distinctive  historical  and  cultural  heritage,  economic  and  social  structures,  and  other  relevant  characteristicswithin  the  framework  of  this  Constitution  and  the  national  sovereignty  as  well  as  territorial  integrity  of  the  Republic  of  the  Philippines.”

Establishment  of  the  Bangsamoro

• Constitution:  Art  X,  Sec.  18.  “The  creation  of  the  autonomous  region  shall  be  effective  when  approved  by  majority  of  the  votes  cast  by  the  constituent  units  in  a  plebiscite  called  for  the  purpose,  provided  that  only  provinces,  cities,  and  geographic  areas voting  favorably  in  such  plebiscite  shall  be  included  in  the  autonomous  region.

u the  present  geographical  area  of  the  ARMM

u those  qualified  for  inclusion  in  the  plebiscite,  by  way  of  resolution  or  petition

u 6  Municipalities    in  the  province  of  Lanao del  Norte:  Baloi,  Munai,  Nunungan,  Pantar,  Tagoloan and  Tangkal

u 39  barangays  in  the  Municipalities  of  Kabacan,  Carmen,  Aleosan,  Pigkawayan,  Pikit,  and  Midsayap in  North  Cotabato

u the  Cities  of  Cotabatoand  Isabela

The  Bangsamoro  territory  shall  remain  a  part  of  the  Philippines.  

Proposed  Bangsamoro Core  Territory

Opt  in  clause  (Sec.  4,  Art  XV,  BBL)• Any  local  government  unit  or  geographic  area  outside  of  the  Bangsamoro

• Contiguous  to  any  of  the  component  units  of  the  Bangsamoro

• Verified  petition  by  at  least  10%  of  its  registered  voters• Plebiscite  where  majority  of  voters  say  yes  to  joining  the  Bangsamoro

• Constitution:  Art  X,  Sec.  10.  “…  subject  to  the  approval  by  a  majority  of  the  votes  cast  in  a  plebiscite  in  the  political  units  directly  affected”

2.  The  MILF  will  not  “rule”  over  the  Bangsamoro

• MILF  is  the  Government’s  counterpart  in  the  negotiations

• Bangsamoro  Government  is  the  democratically-­‐elected  government  in  the  Bangsamoro;  It  will  be  ministerial  or  parliamentary  in  form

Constitutionality  of  parliamentary?

• Constitution:  Art  X,  Sec.  18.  “…  The  organic  act  shall  define  the  basic  structure  of  government  for  the  region  consisting  of  the  executive  department  and  legislative  assembly,  both  of  which  shall  be  elective  and  representative  of  the  constituent  political  units….”

Bangsamoro  Transition  Authority

• Interim  government  until  the  May  2016  elections

• 50  members,  all  appointed  by  the  President

• MILF-­‐led

3.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  have  its  own  armed  forces

• BBL:  Art.  XI,  Sec.  15.    “The  defense  and  security  of  the  Bangsamoro  shall  be  the  responsibility  of  the  Central  Government…”

• The  MILF  will  decommission  its  forces  in  a  gradual  and  phased  manner

Annex  on  Normalization  

On  the  security  aspect:• Decommissioning  of  the  MILF• Redeployment  of  the  AFP• Disbandment  of  PAGs• Strengthening  of  the  Bangsamoro  Police  for  law  enforcement

Annex  on  Normalization

On  the  socio-­‐economic  aspect• Socio-­‐economic  development  programs  for  the  Bangsamoro,  with  special  focus  on  BIAF  members,  internally-­‐displaced  persons,  and  poverty-­‐stricken  communities

On  the  transitional  justice  aspect• Transitional  Justice  and  Reconciliation  Commission

4.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  have  a  separate  police

• BBL:  Art  XI,  Sec.  2.  “There  is  hereby  created  a  Bangsamoro  Police  which  shall  be  organized,  maintained,  supervised,  and  utilized  for  the  primary  purpose  of  law  enforcement  and  maintenance  of  peace  and  order  in  the  Bangsamoro.  It  shall  be  part  of  the  Philippine  National  Police.”

4.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  have  a  separate  police

• BBL:  Art.  XI,  Sec.  5.  “There  is  hereby  created  a  Bangsamoro  Police  Board,  which  shall  perform  the  functions  of  the  National  Police  Commission  in  the  Bangsamoro.  The  board  shall  be  part  of  the  National  Police  Commission  (NAPOLCOM)…”

Clarifications

• There  is  no  automatic/wide-­‐scale  INTEGRATION  of  the  MILF  combatants  to  the  PNP  or  the  AFP– Not  found  in  the  signed  documents– If  they  wish  to  apply,  they  will  have  to  comply  with  the  requirements  set  by  the  national  PNP

• Disciplinary  authority  exercised  by  the  Police  Board  does  not  remove  the  disciplining  powers  of  other  officials/agencies  (e.g.  Chief  PNP,  Provincial  Director,  Chief  of  Police,  Regional  Director,  Ombudsman,  Civil  Service  Commission,  etc.)

Clarifications

• Hiring  will  still  be  conducted  at  the  national  level

• There  is  no  religious  test  for  membership  in  the  Bangsamoro  police

• The  powers  granted  to  the  Chief  Minister  over  the  Bangsamoro  police  (operational  supervision  and  control)  are  already  exercised  by  the  Mayors  of  cities  and  municipalities  under  the  PNP  Law  (RA  6975,  as  amended  by  RA  8551)

5.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  have  its  own  constitutional  commissions

• Bangsamoro  auditing  body  – internal  audit  already  present  in  all  government  agencies,  LGUs,  etc (RA  3456,  as  amended  by  RA  4177).

• Bangsamoro  electoral  office  is  regional  office  of  COMELEC

• Bangsamoro  civil  service  body  is  similar  to  human  resources  office  of  other  agencies

5.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  have  its  own  constitutional  commissions

• Bangsamoro  human  rights  commission  is  existing  in  ARMM

• All  without  prejudice  to  the  mandate  of  the  constitutional  bodies

6.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  receive  75B  on  its  first  year  of  operation

• Bangsamoro  Transition  Authority  – P1B  for  its  operations

• Special  Development  Fund  – P7B  for  the  first  year,  P  2B  a  year  for  the  next  5  years

• Annual  block  grant  – approximately  27  B  for  2016

*all  are  government  funds  subject  to  audit  rules

• The  share  of  the  Bangsamoro  in  the  national  internal  revenue  of  the  Government,  which  shall  be  sufficient  for  the  exercise  of  the  powers  and  functions  of  the  Bangsamoro  Government  (Art.  XII,  Sec.  15)

• It  shall  be  automatically  appropriated  to  the  Bangsamoro  Government  and  reflected  in  the  GAA  (Art.  XII,  Sec.  17),  and  regularly  released  (Art.  XII,  Sec.  18)

Annual  Block  Grant

Net  national  internal  revenue  collection  

of  the  BIR    4%

Internal  revenue  allotment  of  LGUs  (40%)

LESS

Annual  Block  Grant

1)  Revenues  from  additional  taxes  beyond  those  already  devolved  to  the  ARMM  collected  three  years  before

2) Share of the Bangsamoro in the governmentincome derived from the exploration,development and utilization of natural resourcescollectedthree years before

Deductions  from  the  annual  block  grants

This  is  without  prejudice  to  the  just  share  of  the  LGUs  under  the  Bangsamoro.

2015Actual

2016Projected

1. Existing  in  the  ARMMa.  Subsidy  to  the  ARMM  in  the  General  Appropriations  Act

24.3 27.0  (Block  Grant)

b.  IRA  of  Local  Government  Units  in  the  ARMM 18.0 20.0c.    Spending   of  National  Government  Agencies  in  the  ARMM  (PNP,  CCT,  DPWH  and  other  agencies)

Will  continue  to  be  budgeted  and  spent  by  National  Agencies  as  these  have  not  

been  devolved2.        Incremental  Spending  in  the  Proposed  BBL

a.  Special  Development  Fund  for  the  Rehabilitation,  Reconstruction,  and  Development

-­‐-­‐ 7.0

b.  BTA  Transition  Fund 1.0c.  Normalization  Fund  in  Different  Line  Agencies  (DA,  DepEd,  TESDA,  PhilHealth,  DOH,  CHED,  and  DSWD)  for  ex-­‐ combatants

3.0 4.0

Some  computations

7.  The  Bangsamoro  will  not  be  an  Islamic  state

• The  Bangsamoro  is  the  secular autonomous  government  mandated  in  the  Constitution

• Shari’ah applies  only  to  Muslims,  and  shall  be  consistent  with  our  Constitution  and  the  international  obligations  of  the  Philippines

• Form  of  government  and  its  policies  are  expected  to  respond  to  the  diversity  of  the  peoples  and  sectors  within  the  region

Bangsamoro Justice  System

Shari’ahCourts

Traditional  /  Tribal  Justice  

SystemLocal  Courts Alternative  

Dispute  Resolution

2727

END