Reversion of Php658-M budget for MILF decommissioning to Bureau of Treasury made through OPAPRU and DSWD mutual agreement
Short link: https://wp.me/paaccn-L11
- EDD K. USMAN | Twitter: @edd1819 | Instagram: @bluestar0910 |Facebook: SDN – SciTech & Digital News
COTABATO CITY (SDN) — In the 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), one of its most salient features is the Normalization Track involving, among others, the decommissioning of 40,000 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants and their weapons.
The Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chaired by Al-Haj Murad Ebrahim are the signatories to the CAB, which took 17 long years to achieve. It is the reason Mindanao, particularly the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), the Philippines in general, is enjoying and experiencing stable peace and security in the absence of fighting between the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the MILF.
“We understand the importance of this step [decommissioning] towards our goal of achieving lasting peace in the Southern Philippines. After all, the MILF only aspires for equal opportunities and access for growth and development for the Bangsamoro people and its homeland,” said Ebrahim, who is also the interim chief minister of the BARMM.
Falling under the Normalization Track of the CAB, the decommissioning had already processed and completed three phases and should be on track for its fourth and final phase.
MILF Peace Implementing Panel Chair Mohagher M. Iqbal was reported on the Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI) to have said in December 2024 that already 26,145 ex-MILF combatants and their weapons have been disbanded or decommissioned. He added that 14,000 are still active fighters.
But it seems, on the other hand, that the decommissioning process — a very important component for achieving sustainable peace — may have hit a wall, a potential setback if not addressed quickly.
One of the legislators at the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), Member of the Parliament (MP) Eddie M. Alih has reacted on his social media page on the return of Php658 million to the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) by the Department of Social Work and Development (DSWD) headed by Secretary Gatchalian.
It was learned the budget was for the fourth/final decommissioning of MILF combatants/weapons allocated to the DSWS by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU) led by Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr.
Before the year 2024 ended, DWSD Undersecretary Alan Tanjusay of the Inclusive-Sustainable Peace and Special Concerns (ISPSC) Cluster, acknowledged that the OPAPRU funds “were originally intended for the provision of socio-economic interventions to another set (of) decommissioned MILF combatants as part of the Normalization Track under the (CAB).”
He explained why the DSWD returned the funds to the BTr.
“We were supposed to proceed with the fourth phase of the decommissioning process this year. However, since there were delays with the finalization of the official list of beneficiaries, the DSWD and the OPAPRU arrived at the mutual decision to return the funds allocated for the said phase to the Bureau of Treasury,” Tanjusay, a former labor leader, said on December 27.
Alih, an alternate member of the Secretariat of the MILF Peace Implementing Panel, noted the significance of the Normalization Track.
He said it’s “a vital pillar of the Bangsamoro peace process. As outlined in the (CAB), the implementation of the various components of normalization must be parallel and commensurate. Decommissioning is one of the eight components of normalization, and of the agreed 40,000 MILF combatants to be decommissioned, 26,145 have already undergone the process across three phases since 2019.”
Alih added that decommissioning is just one of the many key components of the process of normalization, which covers the disbandment of private armed groups and transitional justice and reconciliation, saying these two “are lagging behind.”
“The disbandment of private armed groups is essential to achieving long-term peace and stability in the Bangsamoro. Without this component, the region remains vulnerable to violence and insecurity. Similarly, transitional justice and reconciliation is critical in addressing historical injustices and grievances that fuel mistrust and division among communities. Delays in these areas not only undermine the credibility of the normalization track but also risk alienating stakeholders who have placed their trust in the peace process,” BTA parliamentarian emphasized.
His comment continues below, stressing respect for the decision of the DSWD:
“Ensuring the fulfillment of commitments to decommissioned combatants is critical before proceeding with the fourth phase of decommissioning.
“While we respect the DSWD’s decision to revert the Php658 million to the Bureau of the Treasury, this budget could have been programmed and utilized to address the pressing needs of the decommissioned combatants and support the lagging components of the normalization process. Doing so would have demonstrated the government’s dedication to fulfilling its commitments and sustaining the gains of peace.”
On the other hand, the DWSD is a member of the OPAPRU-chaired Task Force for Decommissioned Combatants and Communities (TFDCC).
The DSWD’s Tanjusay assured that the agency “remains committed to advancing the peace process and ensuring the successful implementation of the Normalization program.”
In his statement the DSWD published on its website, he said the agency sees the MILF immediately providing necessary documents and beneficiary lists for the decommissioning for 2025 so as “to enable the seamless fund releases for the decommissioning process of former (MILF) combatants.”
He added:
“We want to reassure everyone that the national government’s dedication to achieving lasting peace and sustainable development in BARMM will not be deterred.”
Iqbal, the education minister of the Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE), one of the BARMM’s 15 primary ministries, said each of the ex-MILF combatants are entitled to receive compensation amounting to Php950,000 that includes Php650,000 for housing, Php100,000 cash assistance, as well as for PhilHealth and scholarships.
But so far, he clarified, only Php100,000 amount was given to each of the 26,145 decommissioned fighters, he said in the PDI report.
Galvez, a former AFP general, said the government is eyeing the decommissioning of all the former MILF fighters before the May 12, 2025, parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro region. (/)