‘Cordi autonomy bills have slim chance of passage by Congress’

>> Wednesday, January 2, 2019


As preps for May polls start 


BAGUIO CITY – Bills filed in both Houses of Congress to make the Cordillera autonomous have slim chance of being passed before the  May 2019 polls.
This, according to Baguio Mayor Mauricio Domogan and Rep. Mark Go, during an assessment of the autonomy process here at Ridgebrook Hotel on Dec. 20 by autonomy advocates headed by the Regional Development Council and regional National Economic Development Authority. 
According to both officials, it is just a few months away to May polls next year and legislative officials of the House of Representatives and Senate are busy preparing for their campaign.
During the assessment, it was agreed that a more aggressive campaign for Cordillera autonomy should be done to enhance progress for the region.
But according to Cordillera NEDA regional director Milagros Rimando, the budget for the campaign for 2019 was trimmed down to P12 million.
Rimando pushed for more creative and aggressive ways to inform regional constituents on regional autonomy.    
During the assessment, it was agreed upon that there was need to search for more local, regional and national leaders who are willing to sacrifice their time, effort and resources to make the Cordillera autonomous.
This, following resignation of Presidential Peace Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus G. Dureza, a staunch ally of the RDC and Regional Peace and Order Council in bringing to the attention of national leaders the clamor of the people for self-governance.
Domogan, the RDC-CAR and RPOC-CAR chairman called on members of the two regional bodies to join forces in searching for national figures who are willing to champion the region’s renewed quest for autonomy to lobby lobby for passage of pending autonomy bills in both chambers of Congress.
Dureza, who was an adopted son of the Cordillera and given the local name ‘mensapit’ or peacemaker, vowed to be a champion of the region’s quest for autonomy in the national scene.
He initiated the gathering of peace and autonomy pioneers in Mount Data, Bauko, Mountain Province on April 24, 2017, the first meeting of Cordillerans with President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacañang on July 18, 2017 and celebration of the 32nd anniversary of the historic Mount Data ‘sipat’ at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) last Sept. 13
“We really need someone who can sustain our aggressive quest for autonomy, especially at the national level, so we can send the right message to our decision-makers that Cordillerans want the immediate establishment of the autonomous region to ensure the better pace of development in our region,” Domogan said.
Dureza was also instrumental in facilitating the Cordillera Autonomy Forum with senators in coordination with the Office of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office, the Cotabato-based Institute of Autonomy and governance (IAG) and the RDC-CAR that paved the way for the filing of number of counterpart bills in the upper chamber seeking the establishment of the Autonomous Region in the Cordillera.
Last August 14,, the House committee on local government conducted an initial public hearing on House Bill 5343 or the Lower House version of the Cordillera autonomy bill authored by all Cordillera lawmakers which Mindanao lawmakers committed to give their unrelenting and support for passage of the proposed law.
Since the initial public hearing of the House committee on the proposed autonomy bill, the same was never calendared for further deliberations by the committee because the lawmakers were preoccupied with the budget deliberations for the proposed 2019 national budget and the proposed extension of the declaration of martial law in Mindanao.
RDC officials and autonomy stalwarts said they were of the hope that pending autonomy bills in both chambers will be cleared for deliberations in the committee and plenary levels right at the start of the regular session next year even if the chances of the bills having to be enacted into law remains bleak at this point due to the limited session days as the campaign period for the May 219 mid-term elections starts.


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