The budget for the year FY2020 was successfully passed and signed into law last November 29, 2019 at the tune of Php 65.92 Billion allotted for the eighteen (18) Ministries and Offices of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.
The Bangsamoro have all the reasons to be joyous, foremost, it is the first budgetary allocation decided by the Bangsamoro themselves that manifested both the political and fiscal autonomy that had been long aspired for by every Bangsamoro. And “which is a fruit of the more than five decades of struggle of the Bangsamoro”, said Interim Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim during the signing into law of the BTA-Cabinet Bill No. 31 entitled “An Act Appropriating funds for the Operation of the Bangsamoro Government from January 1 to December 31, 2020 and other purposes”.
The budget was carried on affirmative vote of 48, 5 abstained and one No vote, by the members of the Parliament.
BEHIND THE SCENE:
Amidst the euphoria on the significant achievement in the implementation of Political Track of the GPH-MILF Peace Agreement is, the apparent onerous voice of condemnation to the lone dissenter for the approval of the 2020 Bangsamoro Government Budget. We may consider these reactions to be an “over-killed”. We are referring to the lone vote for NO of Honorable MP Alzad Sattar especially in the social media circle. While the outrageous reactions were and are done by nitizens, it may not far that the actuations reflects the real behavior and sentiment of the Bangsamoro in general.
Assuming, it is the real behavior of the Bangsamoro in general, just signify the fact of their being far deviation from a normal norms of life. An indication of an abnormal human condition as an effect of the century’s armed campaign against them by waves of colonizers. It is on belief that under normal conditions and democratic idiom, divergence of ideas and freedom of expressions of their own convictions is a sign of healthy governance and decision-making.
The scenario above is not its first emergence as similar incident that reactions in media and public was also experienced as in the case of Parliament Resolution 103 against proposed House Bill 333 of the eight (8) Congressmen within the Core Territory of the Bangsamoro. These are reinforcing event of public hilarious reactions against those who have diverse opinions against their perceived and favored agenda.
The critical consequences of these harsh reactions to every diverse opinion and ideas would lead to or is a prelude to an autocratic or Marxist leadership and governance where only the leaders and those higher echelons of society have the power and authority to speak their minds.
The above scenarios are seen as counter-productive to the envisioned “moral governance” as pushed by present BTA leadership of the new Bangsamoro Government.
Moreover, under Islamic tenets it says: “Kind speech and forgiveness are better than charity followed by injury. And Allah is Free of need and Forbearing”. [Baqara:263]
The above verse is far from its wisdom of any reconciliatory approach when outburst of emotion and there are variations and diverse opinions, ideas much more on conflicting notion related to the above incident.
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