ANGARA: MINDANAO PEACE NEEDS ECO-SOCIAL DEVT

In light of the recent tragedy in Maguindanao, Senator Edgardo J. Angara recently reminded that for the region to attain peace and order, an economic-social progress has to be secured for its people. Angara has been calling for a governing body to oversee regional development in Mindanao to tap its vast human and natural resources and as a long-term effect, end the political and feudal conflicts in the region.

"For the past 97 years, there has been no permanent mechanism to look after the affairs of Mindanao. We cannot solve the Mindanao problem on only a political level. Solving peace and order issues could just mean going around in circles if we fail to deliver social and economic progress to the region. To do this, we must develop the manpower and natural resources of Mindanao, which holds so much potential for progress," said Angara, Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance.

Angara emphasized in his sponsorship speech of the Mindanao Economic Development Act (MEDA) that "the country has yet to realize development goals for Mindanao set 50 years ago," adding that when Mindanao mechanisms were created, they were either subsumed or abolished during changes in national leadership.

Based on figures from the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB), Mindanao, the country's second largest mainland space, is still the poorest of the three island groups in the country, with the highest poverty incidence among the country's major island groups. Its poverty incidence reached 38.8% compared to lower poverty incidence rates in Luzon (20%) and the Visayas (33%).

"The ensuing conflicts and the recent killings in Mindanao can only be traced to a history of social and economic disparity in the region, dragging old issues into the present day. In effect, the clamor for power, at least politically, has become a tool for triumph over any form of injustice," explained Angara. He is proposing the MEDA to harness the region's potentials for industrial development and make it a hub for economic and trade activities with East-Asian neighbors.

MEDA has recently been passed on second reading at the Senate Plenary and is due for third reading.

Angara reiterated that the present over-centralization of the bureaucracy in Manila must be dismantled, and full and unconditional autonomy must be granted to all its government units at once. "ARMM's autonomy will not also be affected. Rather, MEDA will ensure that ARMM will always be in the loop of Mindanao's development," concluded Angara.