SPEAKER Martin Romualdez is eyeing the approval before the Christmas break of resolutions concurring with President Marcos Jr.’s proclamation granting amnesty to rebels who have committed crimes for their political beliefs.
Romualdez and other House leaders on Wednesday night filed House Concurrent Resolutions No. 19, 20, 21, and 22, concurring with the amnesty proclamations.
“We will act with dispatch on these concurrent resolutions and we will strive to approve them before our Christmas break so that rebels who sincerely desire to return to the fold of law and lead normal lives, along with the members of their family, and our nation in general, could enjoy the blessings of peace as soon as possible,” Romualdez said in statement.
The Speaker said the timely adoption of the concurrent resolutions “is attuned with the spirit of hope, peace and joy that Christmas season brings.”
The amnesty proclamations issued by the President “shall take effect upon concurrence by a majority of all the members of the Congress.”
Aside from Romualdez, the authors of the concurrent House resolutions are senior deputy speaker Aurelio Gonzales, Jr., majority leader Manuel Jose Dalipe, minority leader Marcelino Libanan, senior deputy majority leader Ferdinand Alexander Marcos, and Tingong party-list Reps. Yedda Marie Romualdez and Jude Acidre.
Amnesty Proclamations No. 403, 404, 405, and 406 cover members of the Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa ng Pilipinas/Revolutionary Proletarian Army/Alex Boncayao Brigade (RPMP-RPA-ABB), Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CP-NPA-NDF), Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), respectively.
The resolutions express support for the government “in nurturing a climate conducive for peace, and in implementing programs for reconciliation and reintegration of rebels into mainstream society.”
The resolutions also say both Houses of Congress recognize the need to act on rebel returnees’ request for amnesty so they may live in peace in the pursuit of productive endeavors.
For members of secessionist movements in the South, the concurrent resolutions said both houses of Congress share the view that the granting of amnesty enables the delivery of an important government commitment under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, particularly the gradual normalization of the previously conflict-affected areas.
