Lorenzana lauds BARMM's accomplishments, backs BTA extension
DAVAO CITY - Secretary of National Defense Delfin N. Lorenzana reiterated his support to extend the term of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority for another three years during the 10th leg of the Kasama sa Pamana: Regional Pre-SONA Series held in Cotabato City on Tuesday, June 29.
"I support it. Sabi ko nga kay President, under normal circumstances hindi kaya ng tatlong taon lang, Kasi magstart sa zero eh, they started sa zero. Wala silang experience sa governance, everything, wala eh, they were revolutionaries (I even told President Rodrigo Duterte that under normal circumstances, three years is not enough. Because they will start at zero. They started at zero. They have no experience in governance, they were revolutionaries)," Lorenzana said.
He added that the pandemic caused more delays to the transition period. "Eh nagkaroon pa ng COVID, lalong nadelay yung kanilang transition period (With the COVID, the transition period was delayed even more) Kaya I support that the BTA will be extended for another three years."
Lorenzana also lauded the accomplishments of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) that were presented during the Pre-SONA Series. He said the interim government’s achievements is “very impressive.”
“It is not enough that the (BTA) will craft laws but also ensure details of infrastructures that filters towards the barangay," he added.
“We thank and commend the Bangsamoro Government under the leadership of Chief Minister Ahod B. Ebrahim and BARMM ministers for their hard work to commitment towards improving the lives of its constituents and security of the region,” Lorenzana said.
Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles also lauded BARMM's accomplishments.
"We are very impressed, masaya kami na makita ang lahat ng accomplishments ng BARMM, na on their own, with the support of the national government, ay marami na po ang nabigay na tulong na programa at proyekto na talagang nakapagbago sa buhay ng maraming kababayan natin dito sa BARMM (We are happy to see all the accomplishments of BARMM, that on their own, with the support of the national government, a lot of programs and projects were accomplished that helped change the lives of our fellowmen here in BARMM)," he said.
The Kasama sa Pamana: Regional Pre-Sona Series kicked off last April 15 in Butuan City. The pre-SONA series aims to inform the public of the major accomplishments of the government under the leadership of President Duterte including the plans of the administration for the remainder of his term.