House forms TWG to refine autonomy bill

August 20, 2018 Metro BLISTT

QUEZON CITY – The House committee on local government created a technical working group (TWG) to refine the provisions of House Bill (HB) 5343, or the bill that seeks to establish an Autonomous Region in the Cordillera (ARC), before approving the measure for plenary deliberations.
The TWG will be composed of all Cordillera lawmakers: Abra Rep. Joseph Sto. Nino Bernos, Apayao Rep. Eleanor Bulut-Begtang, Baguio City Rep. Mark Go, Benguet Rep. Ronald M. Cosalan, Ifugao Rep. Teodoro Baguilat, Jr. and Kalinga Rep. and Mountain Province caretaker lawmaker Allen Jesse C. Mangaoang, all authors of the measure. The necessary inputs from the concerned stakeholders in the region will be incorporated in the final version of the autonomy bill which will be the one that will be recommended for approval.
The House committee held its initial hearing on HB 5343 at the Nograles Hall, here, August 14, to start the ball rolling for the eventual approval of the measure which was agreed by the members to be calendared for deliberations after the enactment into law of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).
HB 5343 was filed by all the Cordillera lawmakers in March 2017 and was subsequently referred to the House committee on local government for initial deliberations prior to its submission for plenary deliberations.
The House committee hearing was spearheaded by North Cotabato 1st district Rep. Jesus Sacdalan, committee chairman, but was presided over by Zamboanga Sibugay 1st district Rep. Wilter Palma II, sub-committee chairman, and was attended by all the Cordillera congressmen, representatives and concerned stakeholders of the Regional Development Council (RDC) in the Cordillera led by Baguio City Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan, who chairs both the RDC-CAR and the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC-CAR).
The creation of the TWG was to conduct the necessary public hearings and refine the proposed autonomy bill similar to what had been done in the BOL, as was recommended by Lanao del Norte 1st district Rep. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo which was agreed upon by the proponents and committee members present during the meeting.
Bukidnon 3rd district Rep. Manuel Zubiri and Zamboanga del Sur 2nd district Rep. Aurora Cerilles conveyed their all-out support to the clamor of the Cordillera people for the establishment of the autonomous region, and to complete the government’s peace initiatives in the north through the realization of the put up of the ARC after the enactment into law of the BOL that initially completed the peace process in the south.
Cordillera lawmakers agreed to immediately convene as members of the TWG next week to finalize the contents of the proposed autonomy bill, considering Congress will be on recess. The final output will be presented for committee approval upon the resumption of session next month.
Aside from regional directors of line agencies in the region, present during the House committee hearing were Domogan, Mountain Province Gov. Bonifacio Lacwasan Jr., Apayao Gov. Elias C. Bulut Jr., Tuba Mayor Ignacio Rivera and private sector and civil society representatives. DEXTER A. SEE / ABN