Aquino urges officials and employees of
government and instrumentalities, GOCCs and LGUs to actively support observance
of Climate Change Consciousness Week in November
President
Benigno S. Aquino III enjoined all officials and employees of government
agencies and instrumentalities, including Government-Owned and Controlled
Corporations (GOCCs), and local government units (LGUs), to actively support
the observance of the Climate Change Consciousness Week from November 19-25,
this year.
The Chief
Executive issued the directive by virtue of Memorandum Circular No. 35 (series
2012) signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on August 14.
Proclamation No. 1667 (s. 2008) declared
November 19-25, 2008 and every year thereafter as the Global Warming and
Climate Change Consciousness Week.
The
Proclamation aims to create awareness on global warming and climate change
through broad and intensive information and educational campaigns.
The said
proclamation also "seeks to secure the collective cooperation of all
citizens as well as the collective action of the private and public sectors at
all levels in finding solutions to the threats of a changing climate."
The
Climate Change Commission (CCC) shall spearhead the observance of Climate
Change Consciousness Week in partnership with the Cabinet Cluster on Climate
Change Adaptation and Mitigation (CCAM).
"All
officials and employees of government agencies and instrumentalities, including
the GOCCs and LGUs, are hereby enjoined to actively participate and support the
awareness campaign," the President said.
The Chief
Executive directed the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) and
the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) to provide the needed media support to
the event.
Government offices are also enjoined to
conduct related activities during the said week.
Last
August, President Aquino signed into law the People's Survival Fund Bill to
enable the government to effectively address the problem of Climate Change.
The
People's Survival Fund Law amended the Climate Change Act of 2009 by
establishing the People's Survival Fund with an initial P1 billion per year.
PND (js)
Philippines-Malaysia agree to further strengthen
bilateral relations
The
Philippines and Malaysia has agreed to further strengthen its already robust
bilateral relations in the fields of tourism, education, culture, health,
information technology, labor and anti-trafficking.
The
agreement was reached during the bilateral meeting held in Malacañang on Monday
between President Benigno S. Aquino III and Malaysian Prime Minister Dato Sri
Mohd Najib Bin Tun Abdul Razak, who is in the country on an Official Visit.
In a
statement released after their meeting, the two leaders agreed to “further
enhance the dynamic and productive partnerships” between the two countries by
1) taking advantage of the Philippines-Malaysia Joint Commission Meeting to
sustain the momentum of their partnership; 2) conducting regular investment
forums, exchange of trade and investments missions; 3) taking advantage of
tourism opportunities between the two countries; and 4) hastening negotiations
on proposed cooperation agreements.
Prime
Minister Najib arrived in Manila on Sunday for an Official Visit from October
14 to 16. He is accompanied by his wife Madam Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor.
Prime
Minister Najib is in the country to witness the historic signing of the
Framework Agreement between the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front, as third-country facilitator.
He
congratulated President Aquino as he assured Malaysia’s support to the
continuing peace negotiations and the implementation of the Framework
Agreement.
For his
part, President Aquino thanked Prime Minister Najib for the support as
facilitator of the GPH-MILF peace talks since 2001 and their leadership of the
International Monitoring Team since 2004. PND (rck)
President Aquino receives MILF chair in
Malacañang
President
Benigno S. Aquino III welcomed Al Haj Murad Ibrahim, chair of the Moro Islamic
Liberation Front, who called on him at Malacañang on Monday.
Murad,
who was accompanied by MILF Peace Panel chair Mohager Iqbal, will sign the
Framework Agreement reached with the Philippine government represented by Dean
Marvic Leonen.
The
Framework Agreement lays out the processes that both parties will take towards
finding a lasting and durable solution to achieve enduring peace and
sustainable development in Mindanao.
After
posing for photographs, Aquino presented Murad with a table top décor of a
Philippine nipa hut (bahay kubo) while Murad gave a miniature replica of a Moro
brass gong that he said emits the “sound of peace” once struck. PND (rck)
President Aquino witnesses signing of Framework
Agreement between government of the Philippines and Moro Islamic Liberation
Front
President
Benigno S. Aquino III witnessed the historic signing of the Framework Agreement
between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF) in ceremonies held in Malacañang on Monday.
The
GPH-MILF Framework Agreement serves as a roadmap for the creation of a
Bangsamoro entity that will replace the current Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao and lays down the groundwork to achieve lasting and genuine peace in
Mindanao.
“Today,
we sign a Framework Agreement that can finally seal genuine, lasting peace in
Mindanao. In full view of the Filipino people, and witnessed even by our
friends from different parts of the world, we commit to peace: A peace that
will be sustained through democratic ideals; a peace that heals and empowers; a
peace that recognizes the many narratives of the Filipino people, and weaves
them into a single, national aspiration for equitable progress,” the President
said in his speech keynoting the event.
“This
agreement not only marks a new chapter in our history; it now defines the very
path we take as a people – one where opinions are heard and hope is shared;
where understanding and consensus breed meaningful solutions for all
stakeholders; one where every child is offered the opportunity to shape his own
destiny,” he added.
He
pointed out that much work remains to be done as the details of the Framework
Agreement need to be ironed out in order to achieve the goals of the agreement.
“We have
commitments to fulfill, people to lead, and dreams to achieve. The details to
be laid out in the annexes, in particular, provide us with a solid opportunity
to expand the common ground whose principles we have already articulated
through the agreement. I am confident that our faith in each other, and in the
Filipino people, will not waver, and in fact will only grow even stronger in
the years to come,” the President said.
“We are
now at the beginning of a comprehensive agreement that will map out the
detailed steps, detailed commitments, and detailed programs that will lead to
the fulfillment of our long-term goals. We are committed to enabling our
partners to transform themselves to a genuine political party that can help
facilitate the region's transition towards a truly peaceful and progressive place,”
he added.
The
Framework Agreement was signed before the presence of President Aquino,
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and MILF chair Al Haj Murad and by the
chief negotiators of both sides, Marvic Leonen (GPH) and Mohagher Iqbal (MILF).
PND (rck)
Aquino earmarks P8.59-billion for Framework
Agreement transition program
President
Benigno S. Aquino III has earmarked P8.59-billion that will be used to fund the
transition processes that will be stipulated in putting up the Bangsamoro political
entity now that the Framework Agreement between the government of the
Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front has been finally signed.
In his
speech before the formal signing of the Framework Agreement in Malacañang on
Monday the President said that the additional amount for the Transition
Investment Support Plan was on top of the P12.93-million already allocated in
the General Appropriations Act.
“This
year the government has committed 8.59 billion pesos for the Transition
Investment Support Plan, on top of the 12.93 billion pesos already allocated
through our budget,” the President said.
The
amount, the President added, would be used to “map out the detailed steps,
detailed commitments, and detailed programs that will lead to the fulfillment
of our long-term goals.”
“We are
committed to enabling our partners to transform themselves to a genuine
political party that can help facilitate the region's transition towards a
truly peaceful and progressive place. We are committed to giving the region its
rightful share, confident that it will redound to the benefit of all citizens,
and will not just line the pockets of a very select few,” the President said.
The
Framework Agreement defines the nature, structure, and powers of the political
entity called the Bangsamoro that will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao. PND (rck)
Aquino administration wants to finish
comprehensive agreement with Moro Islamic Liberation Front as soon as possible,
government negotiator says
The
Aquino government is targeting to come up with a comprehensive agreement with
the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) as soon as possible although both
sides eye to finish it before the end of the year.
During a
joint press conference with MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal, government
chief negotiator Marvic Leonen said when asked about the deadline: “On the GPH
[Government of the Republic of the Philippines] we have all intentions to make
it as early as possible.”
Leonen
and Iqbal signed in Malacanang on Monday the Framework Agreement that would end
40 years of armed conflict in Mindanao. President Benigno S. Aquino III,
Malaysian Prime Minister Dato Sri Mohd Najib Bin Tun Abdul Razak, MILF Chairman
Al Haj Murad Ibrahim and other partners witnessed the signing.
The
Framework Agreement contains the roadmap, principles and values that will guide
the creation of a new autonomous entity in Mindanao.
President
Aquino is expected to issue an executive order creating the Transition
Commission mandated to implement the agreement, including the crafting of the
Bangsamoro Basic law that replaces the current Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao.
The
crafting of the new law and Mindanao entity is not exclusive to the MILF,
Leonen explained, noting that the process is inclusive and a people-driven
democratic exercise.
Leonen
said he sees an active Transition Commission doing consultations in Mindanao,
submitting a Bangsamoro Basic Law (draft) to Congress, and deliberating with
the elected representatives.
After the
President signs the law, it will undergo full ratification from the people in
the area to gain political, legal and constitutional mandate, the government
chief negotiator said.
Leonen
said he and his counterparts in the MILF are scheduled to meet in Malaysia to
discuss the more detailed annexes of the Framework Agreement that will include
disarmament and reintegration.
Iqbal, on
the other hand, refused to disclose their position on disarmament and
reintegration saying the issue will still be subjected for discussions with their
counterparts. PND (as/4:57pm)
Moro National Liberation Front part of inclusive
transition process, says Leonen
The
Aquino administration is inviting the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) to
take part in the Transition Commission that will draft the Bangsamoro Basic
Law, government chief peace negotiator Marvic Leonen said on Monday.
"Insofar as the government is concerned,
there is every intention that the government side of the transition commission
will be inclusive and yes, it will include members of the MNLF," Leonen
said during the joint press briefing in Malacanang on Monday.
Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal, who joined
Leonen during the joint press briefing, said both parties have already come out
with a shortlist.
"We
have the shortlist already and certainly, we would consider women
participation, a member of the IP (Indigenous Peoples), and maybe a
representative from the non-government organizations, we will also involve
them,” Iqbal said.
The basic
law for the creation of the Bangsamoro, which will be drafted by the transition
commission, will go through the full process of legislation in the Congress,
Leonen said.
"Perhaps what I could say is that it is a
paper that enumerates the political commitments of the Government of the
Republic (of the Philippines) to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and what it
creates is not something that is exclusive to the MILF," he said.
"Let
me repeat, the process is an inclusive people-driven and democratic process: A
Transition Commission which will go for consultations throughout the area;
submitting a Bangsamoro Basic Law or a draft of it to the Congress; the House
and the Senate deliberating with elected representatives; the President mulling
over the product of Congress when it passes this bill in three readings; and
then, finally, a full ratification from the people in the area," Leonen
said.
The
Constitution and lawfull processes shall govern the process of creating the
Bangsamoro, according to Leonen adding that the Bangsamoro is a political,
legal and constitutional mandate.
In a
statement, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Quintos Deles
welcomed the arrival of Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Bin Tun
Haji Abdul Razak, Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General
Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu, and other foreign dignitaries to witness the historic
signing of the Framework Agreement between the Government of the Philippines
(GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Malacañang Monday.
Composed
of 57 member states, the OIC brokered the 1992-1996 GPH-MNLF peace negotiations
that led to the signing of the Final Peace Agreement on September 2, 1996.
Malaysia,
on the other hand, has been facilitating the GPH-MILF peace talks since 2001.
The
GPH-MILF Framework Agreement is dubbed as the “mother agreement” that serves as
a roadmap for the creation of the new Bangsamoro entity that will replace the
current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. PND (js)
President Aquino’s sincerity made Framework
Agreement possible, says Iqbal
The Moro
Islamic Liberation Front wants to seize the opportunity to complete the
Framework Agreement with the government while President Benigno S. Aquino III
whom it describes as “a very reliable partner” is in power.
“We have
a very reliable partner in the person of President Benigno S. Aquino III. We
want to finish everything before his term ends for practical purposes, we want
to finish the process,” MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said in a joint
press conference with government chief negotiator Marvic Leonen in Malacanang
on Monday.
The two
negotiators held the joint press conference after they signed the Framework
Agreement in Malacanang earlier, which was witnessed by the President,
Malaysian Prime Minister Dato Sri Mohd Najib Bin Tun Abdul Razak, MILF Chairman
Al Haj Murad Ibrahim and other partners.
Iqbal was
responding to questions whether how important is it for the MILF to have the
agreement implemented by 2016.
For his
part, Leonen said the Aquino administration is committed to the peace process
because the agreement contains the political commitment of the President,
noting the President’s intention was to seal the deal as early as possible.
“The
President wanted an agreement early enough so that it can be implemented, it
can be assessed, and in the next administration it is a legacy that can be
improved,” Leonen said.
In his
opening statement Iqbal gave President Aquino, MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad
Ibrahim, the Malaysian government credit for making the agreement possible. The
MILF believed and trusted the government especially because of the President’s
‘matuwid na daan’ or ‘straight path’ policy, he said.
The
Framework Agreement will put an end to 40 years of conflict in Mindanao that
resulted to hundreds of casualties. The MILF started negotiating with the
government in 1997.
President
Aquino is expected to issue an executive order following Monday’s signing of
the Framework Agreement to create a Transition Commission.
Leonen
said both panels will be returning to Malaysia to iron out the annexes of the
Framework Agreement that will include decommissioning and disarmament of the
MILF. PND (as/6:03pm)
