BAGUIO CITY—President Rodrigo R. Duterte fully supports the Cordillera region’s renewed quest for autonomy vis-à-vis his platform to shift to a federal form of government, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Martin Andanar said here.
Because autonomy and federalism “co-exist with each other,” Andanar said there will be “bright prospects” for the realization of Cordillera’s quest for autonomy “for as long as the President will continue to advocate for federalism with full steam.”
Andanar was in town for the country’s hosting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit that falls on the 50th anniversary of Asean.
“There will surely be bright prospects for autonomy to be achieved while President Duterte will be aggressive in his campaign for federalism because the region and the federal states will have greater control of their resources for the development of their respective places,” he stressed.
PCO assistant secretary Ana Marie Rafael-Banaag said the status of the Cordillera will still depend “on the will of the people.” The region can strive for autonomy before the onset of federalism, become an independent federal state, or be an autonomous region within a federal state.
Banaag urged autonomy advocates “to sustain the aggressive information and education campaign to inculcate into the minds of the people the benefits of becoming an autonomous region, wherein the regional government will have greater control of its resources with lesser restraint from outside forces.”
Earlier, Presidential Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza suggested Cordillerans should strive to achieve autonomous status while the move for federalism will be put in place so the region will have greater leverage in maintaining its status as an autonomous region within a federal state, or an independent federal state depending on its capacity to stand alone.
Local governments and the Regional Development Council in the Cordillera passed separate resolutions expressing their support to the national government’s plan to shift from the current presidential form of government.
They have requested President Duterte to certify the autonomy bill to be filed by Cordillera lawmakers as an urgent administration measure to guarantee its passage in both the House of Representatives and Senate during the present administration.
Andanar said President Duterte will always be a strong advocate for the realization of federalism and autonomy in the regions of the country.
Duterte “believes devolving the powers of the central government to the federal states or autonomous regions will be the ultimate solution in spurring socioeconomic development that will contribute in uplifting the living condition of the people in the countryside,” he added.
“That has been the clamor of the people wherein there should be equitable development opportunities for both the rural and urban areas in the archipelago,” Andanar said.