Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto thinks it’s important to include a checklist of development targets, to be referred to as Moro Development Goals or MDG, in the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) now under review in the Senate.
In a statement issued on Monday (June 22), Recto said, at the moment, the draft law centers on the organization and creation of various institutions, such as the number of people who will sit at the regional parliament and tax policies.
He then further explained that, although the broader aspects of the law are important, particulars and smaller details should also be taken in to careful and thorough consideration.
More than the institutions needed for governance in the region, the senator stressed that what would be more essential is the output and development expected from these institutions.
“The importance in establishing a government is not only identifying what institutions are needed but also the goals and end results these offices must achieve,” Recto said.
An example he provided was to mandate goals that must be achieved in a specific period of time, particularly the creation of a scholarship fund that will require the training of various Moro professionals such as engineers, scientists, and doctors.
The senator put human development as one of the main foci of the BBL, citing the 54% registered poverty rate in the last year and more than 42,000 unemployed individuals in the region. The Department of Budget and Management states that fund transfers will amount to more than P528 billion in the first few years of the BBL’s approbation.
Although the language of legislation of the MDG may prove to be a challenge, Recto said it could be done and emphasized that “institutionalizing MDG’s or Moro Development Goals will make the BBL about the people and not as a scheme to appease rebels, accommodate politicos, or advance the interest of clans.”
