PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed confidence on Tuesday, November 14, 2023, that the cooperation between the Bangsamoro and the National Government will advance the development in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Barmm).
During the first Barmm Local Legislative General Assembly in Davao City, Marcos called for greater cooperation and coordination among the national and Bangsamoro local legislative offices.
“I have said it before but I will say it again, I have never recognized a Mindanao problem. Whatever problem is in Mindanao is a Philippine problem and that is why it requires efforts of all governments to make sure that Barmm will be a success in the future,” he said.
“It is not an effort that is only happening in Barmm. It is also a process that we are endorsing, promoting, and encouraging in the National Government to strengthen our institutions. But there lies the way forward. There lies the way to a safe, progressive, and resilient future. The National and Bangsamoro governments will now have greater cooperation because of these offices that have now been established. We will have greater cooperation, greater coordination, and we will converge towards the realization of our shared endeavors,” he added.
Marcos also urged Bangsamoro officials to sustain its gains in the region and explore the various collaborations that will improve the socio-economic condition of the Bangsamoro people.
He reiterated the administration’s unwavering commitment to support the development agenda to achieve sustainable and peaceful self-governance of the Bangsamoro Government.
“We have made some false starts. We have come to some successes. But we have never come this far. But it also reminds us how much work there still needs to be done,” the President said.
“The organization of a new regional autonomous government is something that we still have to learn about. It is something that we still have to study with the experiences of other people, other countries around the world and that was very much part of the discussion when we -- we’re talking about how we were going to form the autonomous region, the government for the autonomous region, the parliamentary, the fusion as our minister has explained earlier, the fusion of the legislative and the executive,” he added. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)