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Backlog in decommissioning combatants: Sen. Francis “Tol” Tolentino asks Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Carlito Galvez Jr. during the hybrid hearing on the agency’s proposed 2022 budget Wednesday, September 15, 2021 whether the government is still on track with the normalization process and exit agreement as required by the Bangsamoro Organic Law. Tolentino also requested the revised timeline for the implementation of the normalization program. Galvez told Tolentino that the government has failed to decommission around 21,000 (rebel) combatants and transform camps due to the Covid-19 pandemic. “We were supposed to decommission 14,000 combatants last year but because of no close contact and also because of the quarantine controls and no mass gathering, we were not able to implement the normalization program of 14,000 combatants. For 2021, because of limited funds, we were only able to fund 7,000 out of the 14,000 so the backlog is 21,000,” Galvez said. He assured Tolentino he will submit a revised timeline of the normalization program which was designed to provide for a comprehensive strategy to promote healing and reconciliation among communities in the Bangsamoro that have been affected by armed conflict. (Voltaire F. Domingo/Senate PRIB)