BTA Speaker Atty. Ali Pangalian Balindong delivered his address to the Parliament on the ceremonial opening of the third regular session.
Bangsamoro Wali SHEIKH KHALIFA USMAN NANDO, Chief Minister AL-HAJJ MURAD EBRAHIM, Members of the Cabinet, Officers and Members of the Bangsamoro Parliament, Bangsamoro Mufti ABU HURAIRAH UDASAN, distinguished guests, fellow Bangsamoro, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Assalamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh!!
I am full of pride and honor to be again here in this august chamber as the presiding officer of the distinguished men and women of the Bangsamoro Parliament. I have been in the business of legislation for more than two decades, but my sense of fulfillment as a politician and legislator has never been as profound as it is today. To lead an assembly of dedicated parliamentarians who will shape the future of the Bangsamoro is indeed the pinnacle of my career. On top of that, it is quite a rare opportunity for any political career to be led by a visionary, revolutionary leader of a Chief Minister. One cannot help but think that the stars have aligned for the Bangsamoro that crucial elements needed to achieve true empowerment and regional development are all but there.
I am doubly proud as your Speaker because of the things that you have accomplished in your work. Despite the serious challenges, you were able to adapt – turning every misfortune into opportunity, every challenge into goal and every failure into inspiration. You have proven the naysayers wrong. So far, we have enacted three important legislations – the Administrative Code, Civil Service Code and the Education Code – and we are working hard to finish so much more, complete the transition and ensure that the next administration have everything needed to further progress in the region and verily maximize our tenure.
Perhaps, one would ask – how a bunch of professionals who have little or no experience in legislation were able to accomplish these things. The answer is simple – all of you are sworn into the Qur’an to be the instrument of Allah (SWT) to serve all our constituents in the Bangsamoro. And we are bound to do it, crisis or no crisis, in the best and worst of times, with or without the help of anybody.
But we are not yet through. We are not yet out of the woods. The challenges and problems are still there, made even more complicated by constraints in time and resources.
The term-extension of the transitional government is a critical concern for the Bangsamoro people because the institutions that are fundamental before a new regional government is elected in its place, have not been set up. While we have exerted efforts to accomplish our mandate within the timelines prescribed by the Bangsamoro Organic Law, our output has been severely limited by circumstances beyond our control. One, when we started in 2019, the budget we had was designed only for governance as it is intended only for the predecessor of BARMM. Don’t forget that our mandate is not only to ensure transition but also to
govern, which brings us to the second and third reasons, our budget was delayed and the pandemic ensued. Still we delivered so much than what were expected given the limitations.
Don’t get me wrong, we are not finding fault. We understand that the national government’s resources have been spread too thin because of the pandemic. And that everyone has, in some way or another, been affected by the health crisis.
What we don’t comprehend is that certain quarters are opposed to the term extension, even if they do not have a complete grasp of our work and did not experience the difficulties that we encountered. Worse, certain Muslim leaders and politicians who claim to be servants of the Bangsamoro are the ones lobbying to the national government, particularly in the Senate and the House of Representatives, against passing the proposed law for term-extension.
For me, the indecisive support of Congress to our plea once again illustrates the insensitivity of some non-Muslim politicians about the plight of the Bangsamoro and the brazenness of some Muslim leaders to be more concerned on strengthening and perpetrating their political power, rather than help the poor Bangsamoro to get up on his feet and prepare for his future. This despite the collaborative leadership as espoused at the outset by the Chief Minister, Murad Ebrahim.
I apologize if I have offended anybody. But this is simply the truth. We have given the reins of government of the autonomous region to politicians since the enactment of Republic Act. No. 6734 in 1989, but we have seen a little improvement on the quality of life of our people since then.
It is therefore necessary that we allow the Bangsamoro leadership, headed by Interim Chief Minister Murad Ebrahim, to finish the mandate and prove their worth to our people, within a reasonable period of time. Let us give these revolutionaries-turned-parliamentarians a complete chance to realize their vision for the Bangsamoro. Perhaps, their perspective, which is forged in the battlefield, is better than most of us, whose idea may have only been fashioned thru the ballot. They have toiled blood, sweat and tears and lost the stamina of their youth for the Bangsamoro. It will not hurt if you will give them a few added amount of time to fulfill their promise to our people, before the strength in their aging bodies fails them. Besides, all of us here are capable individuals. We have time and again proven that. Our house may have been knocked down by the tempest of problems but we have managed to get up and do our work. And we will do our work again, no matter what.
That should be our mindset right now – to continue working with our best efforts for the well-being of our people, regardless of the circumstances. Let us not mind the cynics and haters, and the sour grapes, whose unmistakable self-interest is the sole basis for their existence. Instead, let us better ourselves and let the quality of our work be “the” standard of public service not only to the Filipino nation but to the entire world.
Indeed, you are the jewels of our office. And no amount of hurtful critique can darken your luster. Your sheer determination and sincere desire to help improve the lives of our people have already overcome the initial challenges and birth pains of our fledgling institution. There is no reason why we can falter even if time is not on our side. In Shaa Allah!
Wassalamu Alaikom Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh.
