MANILA, Philippines – The Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have firmed up preparations for the historic signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) on March 27 at Malacañan Palace.
GPH chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said that the CAB signing seals the partnership for peace and prosperity between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. “This partnership is based on our shared aspiration to heal the wounds of conflict, enable meaningful autonomy for the Bangsamoro, and nurture peace and development in Muslim Mindanao.”
“From the FAB to the CAB, we have come a long way,” said Coronel-Ferrer. “We dedicate the signing of the CAB to all the people who have helped us reach this stage in the journey. To them we owe this opportunity to bring our people closer together toward shared peace and prosperity under one country standing tall before the global community.”
More than a thousand people are expected to attend the event at Malacañang.
Government chief negotiator Colonel-Ferrer and MILF panel chair Mohagher Iqbal will sign the CAB with Malaysian Third Party Facilitator Tengku Dato’ Ab Ghafar Tengku Mohamed signing as witness.
The CAB serves as basis for the drafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law being done by the Bangsamoro Transition Commission. The draft law will be submitted to Congress and certified by the President as urgent. A plebiscite will then be held at the areas identified in the agreement after the law is passed.
These areas are the current provinces and cities in the ARMM, the cities of Isabela and Cotabato, six municipalities in Lanao del Norte, and 39 barangays in six municipalities of Cotabato province.
At the same time, the GPH and MILF panels are working on the terms of reference for the different bodies that will be created as part of the “normalization” process.
