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| 09 FEBRUARY 2008 | . | |
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| 09 FEBRUARY 2008 | . | |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Speech at the
Local Peace and Security Assembly for Region
XI Tagum City, Davao Del Norte February 8, 2008 |
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• Kining Peace and Security Assembly gisundan ang usa sa labing
makasaysayang hitabo dinhi sa atong nasod – ang unang higayon nga usa ka
tawo gikan sa Mindanao ang galingkod isip Speaker sa House of
Representatives. • Nahinumduman ko nga sa kumperensiya sa Peace and Security sa Cagayan de Oro, niadtong Hulyo sa miaging tuig, mihangyo kanako si ang mga taga-Mindanao agi kan Cong. Rufus Rodriguez nga kung mahimo, ihatag unta ang traynta porsyento isip alokasyon sa Mindanao gikan sa atong national budgat matag tuig. Gisugo ko dayon ang mga namuno sa Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Agriculture (DA) ug Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) aron siguruhon nga masunod dayon kini sa ilang mga programa. • Peace will bring a new era of economic development to Mindanao. Coupled with our increased budget for Mindanao is our new paradigm for peace in the island. At a time when hard power has not proven its value in the world, our model for dealing with the flashpoint area of Mindanao has focused on a unique combination of soft and hard power to promote peace. We have been able to meld together confidence-building measures grounded on strong interfaith dialogue and cultural awareness; investments in economic and basic infrastructure development; and mutual security arrangements to keep the peace in Mindanao. • Congratulations to the region’s military and police in their joint efforts with the military in curbing terrorists and rebels. • The terrorists stand in the way of bringing peace, stability and order to Southern Philippines. We have decided we must wipe them out once and for all. They are a menace to peace • Recently, six of our soldiers died and eight were wounded in an ambush by the New People’s Army (NPA) in Davao Oriental. • We commend our armed forces for their heroic efforts. We regret and mourn with the families of those soldiers who have been caught in the line of fire. • The communist rebels have spent years as a low-level threat. It is time for their disruption of human rights to be put to rest so that the nation can move ahead. They impede the progress and development of a number of rural areas and they are responsible for a wide range of human rights abuses. If we are to become a First World country, we have to put a stop to their ideological nonsense and their criminal acts once and for all. • I have specified a timeline – 2010 – to end armed rebellion. • Kauban sa angay masumpo ang trese ka guerilla fronts dinhi, labi na gayod kadtong ga-kuta didto sa Compostela Valley ug kadtong ana-a sa boundary sa Davao del Sur, Agusan ug Bukidnon. • I extended the term of AFP Chief of Staff General Hermogenes Esperon for three months because I want him to continue the AFP’s current initiatives in fighting terrorism. • I hereby announce the Investment Defense Force function of the military to give protective shield to power assets, other infrastructure, and mineral development projects. • We have made peace with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) a cornerstone of our Administration. We have made great progress thanks to the commitment of the parties involved and to the support of our friends and allies including Malaysia, Libya, Brunei, Japan and others. We are close to an agreement. Our negotiating team has just created a new draft paper on creating a homeland for Muslims in Southern Philippines. We are hopeful this will help restart the talks with the MILF and equally hopeful that it will result in a definitive peace agreement. • However, even as we have achieved a great deal, the island is vastly improved in terms of safety, security and economic growth, our paradigm for peace in the island is really making things better; it will really take off if we achieve lasting peace and the millions of foreign aid promised comes pouring in. • We take the issue of human rights seriously. We have followed the roadmap laid out by the Melo Commission. We have been meeting with success in the fight to put an end to the legacy of political violence in the Philippines. • We deplore any and all killings of political activists and journalists. No person is above the law in this nation. Whether a former president, member of the military or an average citizen, all men and women are equal before the law. The death of any Filipino citizen in pursuit of their right to political expression violates human liberty. • We will continue to bring perpetrators to justice, work with Congress to enact the law on human rights compensation, and exhort the nation to leave behind the terrible legacy of political violence and clan vendetta. Thankfully, political killings were down 83 percent last year but we will not rest until we reach zero. • Ang atong mga kampanya kontra sa terorista ug rebelyon kinahanglan nga ikonekta sa atong pakiglaban sa kapobrehon. • Our economy has reached a new level of maturity and stability with some of the strongest macreconomic fundamentals in 30 years, including a 7.3 percent growth rate. Seven years ago, no one thought we could get more revenues, cut down on tax cheats, strengthen the peso and move the stock market. And no one thought we could bring our budget close to balance, lower our debts and raise employment, but we have. • Today, the Philippines is on a path to permanent economic growth and stability. Investments are pouring in, the peso is strong, our stock market has reached historic heights and we have created seven million jobs in seven years. • The global economic situation is a key issue for us because the more interconnected we become, the more we need to manage through the ups and downs of other nation’s economic imbalances. This is true with any further volatility in the US economy. The good news for the Philippines is that we have matured and diversified our economy so much the last few years that we are confident our economic turnaround is permanent and our economy resilient. • I have ordered a surge in infrastructure projects. We have allocated almost 200 billion pesos for these infrastructure projects. These funds will come from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and other concerned agencies. • Daghang mga proyekto sa imprastraktura ang gibutang dinhi sa rehiyon sa Davao ug Compostela Valley, sama sa Davao-Surigao Coastal Road nga gisa-ad ko sa akong State of the Nation Address, ug ang pagpadako sa pantalan sa Sasa nga mura’g mahuman na. • Apil ining mga imprastraktura ang otsenta’y syete nga Farm to Market Roads sa inyong upat ka probinsiya, kauban ang disisyete nga gitukod dinhi sa Davao del Norte. • Ni-labaw na sa 500 ang mga Botica ng Barangay sa inyong rehiyon. Ang mga probinsiya sa Davao del Norte ug Compostela Valley ang may labing daghang outlets tungod kay kini ang mga probinsya sa rehiyon nga mas daghan ug kinahanglanon. Hapit sa 400 ang gidaghanon sa Tindahan Natin nga gabaligya ug baratong bugas. • I-focus nato ang atong mga gihimo aron makab-ot nato ang permanenteng kalinaw dinhi sa rehiyon ug sa tibuok nasod samtang gipadayon ang mga paningkamot alang sa pag-usbaw. • Pina-agi sa inyong tabang, sa suporta sa ubang pang Pilipino ug sa kalu-oy sa atong Gino-o, malampuson kining atong mga paningkamot aron makab-ot ang atong mga tuyo. |
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| PGMA says peace will bring a new era of economic dev’t to Mindanao |
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President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo has reiterated her 2010 “timeline to end
armed rebellion” as she stressed during the Local Peace and Security
Assembly (LPSA) in Region XI in Mindanao that “peace will bring a new era of
economic development to Mindanao.” The President flew to Tagum City, Davao del Norte Friday afternoon (Feb. 8) to speak at the closing ceremony of the two-day Region XI LPSA. “Coupled with our increased budget for Mindanao is our new paradigm for peace in the island,” the President said as she mourned the ambush killing of eight soldiers by members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in neighboring Davao Oriental recently. Eight soldiers were also wounded in the said ambush. In her speech before some 400 multisectoral participants in the Regional LPSA, the President explained her administration’s peace formula for Mindanao, as in other parts of the country: “At a time when hard power has not proven its value in the world, our model for dealing with the flashpoint area of Mindanao has focused on a unique combination of soft and hard power to promote peace.” Region XI is composed of the provinces of Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, and Compostela Valley. “We have been able to meld together confidence-building measures grounded on strong interfaith dialogue and cultural awareness; investments in economic and basic infrastructure development; and mutual security arrangements to keep the peace in Mindanao,” the President said. “The terrorists stand in the way of bringing peace, stability and order to Southern Philippines. We have decided we must wipe them out once and for all. They are a menace to peace,” she stressed The President commended the police and the armed forces for their heroic efforts, adding that “we regret and mourn with the families of those soldiers who have been caught in the line of fire.” She reiterated her observation that “the Communist rebels have spent years as a low-level threat” and that, therefore, “it is time for their disruption of human rights to be put to rest so that the nation can move ahead.” “They impede the progress and development of a number of rural areas and they are responsible for a wide range of human rights abuses. If we are to become a First World country, we have to put a stop to their ideological nonsense and their criminal acts once and for all. I have specified a timeline – 2010 – to end armed rebellion,” the President said. Because of the urgency in wiping out terrorism, the President let it be known that “I extended the term of AFP Chief of Staff General Hermogenes Esperon for three months because I want him to continue the AFP’s current initiatives in fighting terrorism.” As for Mindanao, the President said her administration has so far “achieved a great deal – the island is vastly improved in terms of safety, security and economic growth.” “Our paradigm for peace in the island is really making things better; it will really take off if we achieve lasting peace and the millions of foreign aid promised comes pouring in...” Earlier on Friday, the President flew to Gingoog City in Misamis Oriental where she inspected the Diosdado Macapagal Bridge and spearheaded the groundbreaking of the P824.45-million Gingoog-Claveria-Villanueva Road improvement and concreting project. She then proceeded to Kapalong, Davao del Norte for the launching of the construction of the P1.5-billion Kapalong-Talaingod-Valencia City-Bukidnon Road, a major component of the government’s “surge in infrastructure” spending program this year. |
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