PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. yesterday said the call to separate Mindanao from the Philippines is “doomed to fail” as people from the affected areas see it as a “preposterous proposal.”
“The new call for a separate Mindanao is doomed to fail, for it is anchored on a false premise, not to mention a sheer constitutional travesty,” the President said in a speech during the observation of the “Constitution Day 2024” in Makati City.
He said the leadership of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) has repudiated it as a “preposterous proposal.”
He said the political leaders of Mindanao recognize there is genuine and effective local autonomy throughout the country, especially in the BARMM.
“I strongly appeal to all concerned to stop this call for a separate Mindanao. It is a grave violation of our Constitution. Hindi ito ang `Bagong Pilipinas’ na ating hinuhubog, bagkus ito ay pagwasak sa ating bansang Pilipinas. (This is not the `Bagong Pilipinas’ we are forming; it is destroying our country.) The Constitution calls for a united undivided country.
It calls for eternal cohesion,” he added.
Former President Rodrigo Duterte proposed the separation of Mindanao earlier this month, saying it is based on the right of the people to free will and principle of determination.
Marcos also urged the public support him and his administration in defending the sanctity of the Constitution, the nation’s territorial integrity and the people’s sovereign will.
He also promised to be the “Great Protector of the Constitution.”
“Join me, your President and your legitimate civilian government, at the forefront in defending the sanctity of the Constitution, the territorial integrity of our country, and the sovereign will of the Filipino people. Rest assured, as President of our great Republic, I will continue to live up to the recognition that you have bestowed upon me almost a decade ago, as a ‘Great Protector of the Constitution’,” he added.
Earlier yesterday at the 17th Meeting of the Intergovernmental Relations Body at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City, Marcos told the BARMM not to allow “forces outside of the democratic process to deviate our dreams and our aspirations from a democratic process.”
He made the call as he acknowledged preparations for the BARMM’s first parliamentary election in May 2025.
He said BARMM should not allow even one single voter to be disenfranchised by violence, intimidation, or bribery.
“Giving the vote to the people to choose their leaders is the logical, succession, evolution, to the grant of self-rule to your land. I urge all of you, and we will be by your side, to make this very historic election, this very historical and important event a success. Let us show the world that it is peaceful and it is credible,” he said.
“On this, let me be blunt that perhaps we must remind ourselves that we are now operating in different rules and that we cannot allow forces outside of the democratic process to deviate our dreams and our aspirations from a democratic process,” he added.
The President also said BARMM faces a new chapter after the elections, optimistic about the region’s future.
He also said that a stronger BARMM would mean a stronger Mindanao while stronger Mindanao means a stronger Philippines.
Marcos said he also cannot imagine a “Bagong Pilipinas” without BARMM.
