The Senate and the House of Representatives are expected to hold a joint session today (Wednesday) to deliberate and pass a resolution calling for a one-year extension of martial law and suspension of the writ of habeas corpus in Mindanao.
After a briefing with government security officials, Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said martial law should be extended as needed in Mindanao.
“As long it takes [martial law should be implemented]. I will vote for it,” she said.
Arroyo, likewise, guaranteed the approval by the lower chamber of the House Concurrent Resolution 24 extending martial law in the southern part of the country.
The joint session of Congress will be held at 9 a.m. today at the Batasang Pambansa.
LGU support
The yearlong extension of martial law in Mindanao is supported by local government units (LGUs), an official of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Tuesday.
Local Government Assistant Secretary and Spokesman Jonathan Malaya said that all local government units in Mindanao, including the umbrella organization of all LGUs, the Union of Local Authorities in the Philippines (Ulap), have all expressed their support for the extension of martial law.
“In fact, we have not heard of any local chief executive in Mindanao who oppose the extension of martial law,” Malaya said in a news statement issued on Tuesday.
“According to our elected local government officials, martial law in Mindanao has led to improved peace and order in their areas. Who are we to argue against that?” Malaya said.
The extension of martial law, he added, is also timely with the forthcoming midterm elections.
“The extension will ensure an improved security climate, especially in election hot spots,” he said.
The official issued the statement, even as the Philippine Councilors League (PCL), the largest organization of local government officials in the country, passed a resolution in support of the extension of martial law.
“We had a meeting with the officials of Ulap, led by Albay Gov. Al Francis Bichara and he said that they are 100 percent behind the recommendation of Secretary Eduardo M. Año on this matter,” Malaya said.
PCL National Chairman Danilo Dayanghirang said the people of Mindanao are “at peace” with the implementation of martial law, which is why declaring support for its third extension in Mindanao is easy.
Dayanghirang, who is also Davao City councilor, said the implementation of martial law in Mindanao has paved the way to various developments in the island and points to the entities opposing its extension as “insignificant minority who are just plain detractors of the current administration.
‘Deterrent’
President Duterte first ordered martial law in Mindanao on May 23, 2017, after local terrorists laid siege on Marawi City.
He asked for a five-month extension that lasted until December 31, 2017, after the 60-day declaration lapsed in July. A second extension was granted by Congress to extend the period of martial law until December 31, 2018.
In a four-page letter dated December 6, Malacañang, through Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, wrote a letter to Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III and Speaker Arroyo to extend for the third time the military rule in Mindanao from December 31, 2018 to December 31, 2019.
According to Medialdea, the declaration of martial law in Mindanao has resulted in the “reduction of the capabilities of different terrorist groups, particularly the neutralization of 685 members of the local terrorist groups and 1,073 members of the communist terror group; dismantling of seven guerrilla fronts and weakening of 19 others; surrender of unprecedented number of loose firearms,” among others.
“For all the foregoing reasons, I implore the Congress of the Philippines to further extend the proclamation of martial law and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in the whole of Mindanao for a period of one [1] year, from 01 January 2019 to 31 December 2019, or for such other period of time as the Congress may determine, in accordance with Section 18, Article VII of the 1987 Philippine Constitution,” said Medialdea.
Image credits: AP Photo/Bullit Marquez