Traders support all Moro convention for ARMM stability

COTABATO CITY -
The ARMM Business Council (ABC), as the umbrella organization of business
chambers and trade associations in the region, today expressed support to the
call for an all Moro convention in order to foster stability in the area.

This was
learned by the Regional Board of Investments (RBOI) after the conduct of their
investment roadshow for Maguindanao last week.

Dr. Rima
Hassan, chairperson of the ABC said that the Marawi siege has definitely
affected business prospects in the region and there is need for a stable
environment for doing business to attract the needed business investments.

We want
the business sector in ARMM to be part of ongoing discussions on changing the
policy environment with regard to the peace process and how it affects doing
business in the region. There is already considerable physical safety concerns
and bringing new rules of the game for business will have to be carefully
considered. I am referring to the two peace tracks of the MILF and the MNLF.
That's why the business sector is supportive of the government's all Moro
convention as announced by Mindanao Development Authority secretary Datu Abul
Khayr Alonto, said Hassan.

We
believe the all Moro convention can effectively become a platform to address
the particular conditions of our respective localities. For example, the
business issues in the island provinces of ARMM tend to be more concerned with
fostering cross-border trade with BIMP-EAGA particularly, Sabah, Malaysia. That
means trading facilities and access to cross-border credit lines, added
Hassan who hails from Basilan.

For Hassan, policy
instability in the midst of the Marawi siege and its aftermath is the last
thing the business sector needs in the ARMM.

Hassan said in
order for the peace process not to be left only in the hands of the Moro fronts
and their followers and for there to be wider buy-in, there is a need for an
all Moro convention that can bring the whole of Moro society to deal with
governance and societal issues that affect the business environment in ARMM.

According to
her, MNLF and MILF still need the support of various constituencies in the ARMM
so that an all Moro convention that is not dependent on both the MNLF and MILF
peace tracks but allows real inputs into it is sorely needed. After all, Hassan
said the MNLF and MILF will also be part of such an all Moro convention.

The call for
an all Moro convention was echoed by Soliman Santos, a leading scholar on the
Moro peace process, strategic thinker on Mindanao issues and an original peace-building
advocate on the Moro fronts.

My
developing or working hypothesis arising from the Marawi Siege is that the
strategic situation on the Moro front has changed qualitatively. Under my
framework for the 2005 Philippine Human Development Report I referred to the
three tracks of the Moro conflictand (1) implementation of the GRP-MNLF 1996
Final Peace Agreement (2) the GRP-MILF peace negotiations, (now implementation
of its 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro) and (3) ASG-led
post-9/11 terrorism (now with the ISIS-inspired Maute Group taking center stage
in 2017) and counter-terrorism on the Moro front. The qualitative rise of the latter 3rd track
with the ASG-Maute-et al. alliance and its bold holding ground in Marawi has
suddenly changed the strategic balance.
The usual peace process approach with the 2nd and 1st tracks with the
MILF and MNLF, respectively, while still very important, will not be enough to
address the new strategic situation, said Santos.

I think
it is time to re-strategize the way forward with the same three tracks but more
coherently dealing with all tracks rather than separately dealing with each
track as has been the usual mode. We
once proposed an All-Moro convention, which may be one important even key step
that can be geared to such re-strategizing, added Santos.

Santos was
glad that the government is now seriously considering and putting in place the
platform for an all Moro convention.

Recently, RBOI
conducted its second investment roadshow in their series of investment
roadshows.

The second
roadshow held in Tacurong City was specifically for Maguindanao and surrounding
provinces in southern Mindanao.

The roadshows
seek to promote industries prioritized by RBOI under the Investment Priorities
Plan 2017, which grants fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to investments in
these industries.

RBOI also
regularly solicits the sentiments of the business sector on issues of the day
such as the proposed all Moro convention.