(Statement) Let the peoples and communities decide freely on the February 6 Bangsamoro Plebiscite

As the day comes close for the province of Lanao del Norte and municipalities of North Cotabato residents to decide over for the inclusion or not of their neighboring municipalities anb barangays to the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, let us call for a peaceful and free February 6 Bangsamoro plebiscite.

Not less than 600,000 registered voters are expected to participate.

Let the people and communities decide freely. We recognize, respect and support this process as a substantial part of the struggle of the Bangsamoro people for the Right to Self-Determination.

But, it is a public knowledge that hopefuls for the May 2019 midterm Elections are using the BOL Plebiscite as a platform to advance their candidacy maligning the Right to Self-Determination discourse making it more complicated and problematic in the ground. Now this process and the right itself is challenged: somehow in the process have divided its own people of more than many reasons and maligned by partisan and traditional politics have made it more in doubt as to the credibility of the result. The more that we all have to reclaim its credibility and legitimacy.

Thus, let us all call for all stakeholders to safeguard the sanctity of the process and not the vested interests to prevail. At the end of the day, Bangsamoro is a promise for change, peace, unity, respect, recognition and progress and should be of, by and for the people. That promise should be real in all aspects of the process towards building the Bangsamoro and in establishing the details.

The February 6 plebiscite should not be a showdown as a prelude to the May 2019 elections though it has been. Commission on Elections MUST reconsider its disqualification grounds for May 2019 hopefuls adding the interventions in the plebiscite as one.

Despite of the directive from the higher rank, the Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine National Police should maintain its non-partisan principle in the process and help in the realization of a credible and peaceful plebiscite.

Moro Islamic Liberation Front and its Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces should police its rank preventing from involvement in any untoward incident and help in making the plebiscite peaceful and free.

That forces of AFP, PNP and BIAF be instruments for the free participation of the voters and not to militarize the supposed to be democratic exercise.

MindanaOne
February 4, 2019