05/08/2026
๐๐๐๐:
๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ญ๐๐ญ๐๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐ก๐๐ข๐ซ ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ง ๐. ๐๐๐ซ๐ฆ๐ข๐๐ง๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฌ
4 ๐๐ถ๐จ๐ถ๐ด๐ต 2026 | ๐๐ข๐ท๐ข๐ฐ ๐๐ช๐ต๐บ
๐๐ด๐ด๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฎ๐ถ ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ช๐ฌ๐ถ๐ฎ ๐ธ๐ข ๐ณ๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ฉ๐ช ๐ต๐ขโ๐ข๐ญ๐ข ๐ธ๐ข ๐ฃ๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ฉ๐ถ.
Chairman Iqbal, distinguished members of both Panels, Tan Sri Zainal Abidin (Third Party Facilitator and/or Special Adviser), members of the International Contact Group (ICG) and the Third Party Monitoring Team (TPMT), good afternoon.
Let me begin by thanking Chairman Iqbal and our Malaysian facilitator. This is my first time addressing you as Chair of the GPH Panel, and I accept this responsibility with humility, optimism, and a firm commitment to continue building on the trust that has brought us this far.
We meet at a critical moment. Much has been achieved since 2014. Just as clearly, much remains to be done. Our task is no longer simply to keep the process moving. Our task is to ensure that what we have built together will continue to stand, long after todayโs challenges have passed.
Since assuming this responsibility in April, one question has stayed with me every single day: ๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐บ๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐น๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐๐น๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐๐? Not only on paper, but in the hearts of our people and in the lives of the generations that will follow.
For me, the durability of this Agreement will not be measured simply by the passage of time. It will be measured by whether our institutions continue to function, whether our mechanisms continue to resolve problems, whether the trust and partnership we have built continue to grow stronger, and whether our communities continue to experience the real and lasting benefits of peace despite political transitions and implementation challenges.
That question has guided every conversation I have had with implementing agencies, with our mechanisms, with our partners, and with many of you. It has also changed the way I look at our work.
Elections, intergovernmental relations, observance of the ceasefire, maintenance of peace and order in mutually agreed areas, decommissioning, socioeconomic development for decommissioned combatants, the transformation of the six previously acknowledged camps, amnesty, and transitional justiceโthey are all part of the same question: ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐๐ฒ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ป๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ?
That question has also challenged our teams. Are we truly changing lives in the camps, or are we merely completing projects? Is every decommissioned combatant receiving what we promised, or are some still waiting? Are we coordinating well enough that communities experience one peace process rather than a collection of separate programs?
These are not simply technical questions.
They are questions of trust.
And trust, once earned, must be nurtured every day.
I saw this clearly three weeks ago in Camp Badre.
Communities do not experience implementation one program at a time. They experience it as a whole. The road from the national highway to Datalpandan in Guindulungan, Maguindanao del Sur is now largely paved, improving access to communities. Bridge work remains to be completed, but people can now travel with greater confidence. Seeing government security forces working alongside their BIAF counterparts reminded me how far we have come. Years ago, such a scene would have been difficult to imagine. Today, it reflects the trust painstakingly built through the enduring ceasefire and the steady work of our jointly established mechanisms.
The snacks served during our visit were prepared by members of the community through a bakery established under the Joint Task Forces on Camps Transformation (JTFCT). It may seem like a simple detail, but it captures what implementation looks like from the perspective of the people we serve.
A road that allows safer travel.
A livelihood that creates opportunity.
A functioning ceasefire that gives communities the confidence to invest in their future.
Access to government services.
These are not isolated interventions. Together, they become the lived experience of peace.
Allow me to express my sincere appreciation to the M**F for its continued commitment. Despite implementation challenges and the demands of a changing political environment, you have remained steadfast in sustaining the ceasefire and strengthening our joint mechanisms. Together, we have preserved confidence between the Parties, safeguarded the gains of the peace process, and continued resolving issues through dialogueโeven when progress has not always been as fast as either side would have hoped.
These visits also reminded me that we need to become even more serious about monitoring implementation. Across government, much good work is happening. Yet we still do not have a complete picture of who has received what, who is still waiting, and what remains to be done. We need a system that allows us to see clearly what has been delivered, what is outstanding, and what our next steps should be.
We cannot improve what we cannot clearly see. Accountability begins with visibility.
We also need to communicate this peace process more openly and more honestlyโwith our communities, our stakeholders, and the Filipino people. They deserve to know not only that we continue to meet, but what we have agreed upon, who is responsible, and how we intend to move forward together. We should never allow others to define the narrative of peace for us.
This brings me to a broader point.
The two tracks of the CAB and the four aspects of Normalization are not separate undertakings. They are one Agreement, one shared commitment, and one shared responsibility. Progress in one area strengthens the others. Delay in one affects them all. If we want this Agreement to endure, we must continue moving these commitments forward togetherโwith the same trust, openness, and partnership that brought us to this point.
In a little over a month, the Bangsamoro will hold its first parliamentary elections. Whatever the outcome of those elections may be, our shared responsibility remains the same. The true measure of our success will be whether we continue to uphold the institutions, the mechanisms, and the commitments established under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB).
I believe our work is entering a new chapter. We have institutions in place. We have mechanisms that have stood the test of difficult moments. Even during periods of political transition and disagreement, these mechanisms have continued to function, allowing us to resolve issues through dialogue rather than conflict. That is institutional resilience. More importantly, it is evidence that the partnership we have built together is strong.
Chairman Iqbal, distinguished colleagues, peace has always required patience. It still does. But patience alone is not enough. It also requires trust, courage, consistency, and above all, the willingness to continue walking together even when the road becomes difficult.
Allow me to assure you that the Government of the Philippines (GPH) comes to this table not only ready to work, but committed to walking this journey with youโas partners. We are not here to revisit what we have already settled. We are here to fulfill what we have promised, strengthen what we have built together, and ensure that this Agreement continues to bring hope, opportunity, and a better future for every Bangsamoro community.
For my part, I will do everything within my responsibility to help ensure that the gains we have achieved are protected, strengthened, and made lasting. My hope is that years from now, people will remember not the meetings we held, but the peace we helped make permanent.
Together, let us make this Agreement endure.
Together, let us make peace irreversible.
We owe that to the Bangsamoro people.
We owe it to every Filipino who continues to believe that this Agreement matters.
Thank you.
๐๐ข๐ฃ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ฉ๐ช ๐ต๐ข๐ถ๐ง๐ช๐ฒ ๐ธ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ช๐ฅ๐ข๐บ๐ข๐ฉ.
๐๐ข๐ด๐ด๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฎ๐ถ ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ช๐ฌ๐ถ๐ฎ ๐ธ๐ข ๐ณ๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ฉ๐ช ๐ต๐ขโ๐ข๐ญ๐ข ๐ธ๐ข ๐ฃ๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ฉ๐ถ.
