June 1, 2012 News: The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has reiterated its firm position against the sale of the Agus and Pulangi hydroelectric power facilities to private corporations, saying this will radically alter the equation in the current GPH-MILF peace negotiation.

Muhammad Ameen, chairperson of the MILF Secretariat, reiterated this position in an interview with Luwaran recently.

“We do not want to deal with any vested interest groups; we want the issue of ancestral domain settled with the government in the current talks,” Ameen explained.

He added that while the MILF is duty bound and will respect vested rights but those created during and after the conclusion of the talks are not just.

He asked the Aquino administration to heed the call of the MILF especially during this critical period of the negotiation with the issues of ancestral domain and territory still hanging in the balance.

Meanwhile,  the Mindanao Commission on Women (MCW) is raising at least P1 billion as seed fund for the amount that will be used to buy out the Agus and Pulangi hydropower complexes to prevent these from going into the hands of private investors.

They accused some quarters, without naming names, that the sale of public assets is being promoted as a cure-all for government budget deficits. But behind the scenes, the push for privatization is driven by corporate interests that see an opportunity for huge profits.

Ms. Irene M. Santiago, chair emerita and chief operating officer of MCW, also said that the sale of public assets provides only a one-time influx of cash but is not beneficial in the long-term. Plus there is no guarantee that the money from the sale will be used to benefit the people directly and not lost to corruption.

Santiago explained that the aim is to form a steering committee for the campaign in every city and province in Mindanao, the entire nation and hopefully in the Filipino diaspora.

The MCW head said that Filipinos and Mindanaons abroad will share out their pledges online since the campaign will also be presented through popular social media like Facebook and Twitter.

Similarly, Rufino Gonzaga, chairperson of Ranao Tri-people Movement for Genuine Peace and Development, made this assertion:  “The Electric Power Industry Reform Act is the root cause of the manipulation and the make-believe power crisis. We strongly oppose the privatization of the Napocor plants and the nation’s power industry.

“The planned move of the Aquino administration to sell the power plants to private businesses would only create the real Mindanao power crisis.”