Provincial Government, Buluan, Maguindanao — Representatives from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and the provincial government of Maguindanao met here on Tuesday, April 20, to discuss the implementation of dispute resolution programs in the province.
According to Director Farrah Grace Naparan, chief of staff of OPAPP’s Joint Normalization Division (JND), dispute resolution is an integral part of the security component of the normalization track under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB).
“We do not implement dispute resolution programs in a vacuum; we always do it in conjunction with the other components of the normalization process,” explained Naparan in her briefing to local officials on the normalization process.
Maguindanao Provincial Administrator Mohajeran Balayman said that under the leadership of Governor Bai Mariam Mangudadatu, they hope to carry out more “collaboration efforts (with OPAPP) in the long months and years to come,” for “peace and development, upang mapabago ang Maguindanao.”
Ariel Hernandez, co-chair of OPAPP’s Joint Normalization Committee (JNC), underscored the importance of establishing strong partnerships with LGUs, as these will be the key in the successful implementation of the various peace mechanisms.
“I am very happy that the counter-parting (with LGUs) is very present. We need to strengthen our sense of focus, and invite BARMM (Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) machineries and go beyond the dynamics,” Hernandez said.
Collaborative efforts on dispute resolution
In December 2020, OPAPP and the provincial government of Maguindanao signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) expressing their full support to the Program on Dispute Resolution.
OPAPP also turned over PhP 11.7 million in funds to the Maguindanao provincial government for the implementation of programs on dispute resolution under the Normalization Program.
Roger Dionisio, focal person of the provincial government’s Anak na may Ginintuang Layunin upang Hintuan ang Violent Extremism Ngayon Program or AGILA-HAVEN outlined the initiatives the provincial government plans to carry out under the MOA.
Dionisio explained that the AGILA-HAVEN is the peace-building mechanism of the provincial government that is anchored on the whole-of-government approach. In particular, it is designed to address peace and security-related concerns in the province.
The Maguindanao Inter-Agency Task Force AGILA is composed of representatives from the provincial government, Ministry of the Interior and Local Government, Philippine Army, Philippine National Police, BARMM line agencies, and the National Housing Authority, and municipal and barangay local government units.
Engr. Jedahni Ulangkaya, senior agriculturist and dispute resolution focal of the province, also presented the program design for the proposed activities under the AGILA Program. .
These include coordination meetings with stakeholders, peace dialogue initiatives, capacity-building and training on alternative dispute resolution for community members, Peace MERUIT (Mediation, Reconciliation, Unification and Investigation Team), Project UNGAya, assessment and evaluation on program implementation, knowledge product development, and information and education campaigns.
Meanwhile, Col Joel Mamon, deputy brigade commander of the 601st IB, and head of the combined secretariat of the Government of the Philippines-Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (GPH-CCCH) and GPH-Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (GPH-AHJAG), lauded the improvements made by the provincial government in the implementation of its dispute resolution programs which utilize a multi-stakeholder approach.
“We in the ceasefire mechanisms of the Government of the Philippines, and from the 6ID support all the programs of the Maguindanao Province,” Mamon said.
OPAPP has also signed similar memoranda of understanding with the local governments of North Cotabato Province and Municipality of Patikul, Sulu to implement dispute resolution programs in their respective areas
