“I MAKE this solemn commitment that this administration will never deny our Muslim brothers and sisters the basic legal tools to chart their own destiny within the constitutional framework of our country.”
This was what President Duterte said in his third State of the Nation Address. It is good that the resolution of the Mindanao conflict and the plight of thousands of Filipinos affected remain high in the government’s priority list. The peace process must achieve long-term stability and prosperity for the people of Mindanao.
The government must persevere in its efforts to end the armed conflict in Mindanao through peaceful means. There are no quick-fix solutions to the long-festering problem. The talks bogged down a lot of times in the past. Certainly, a purely military solution will not solve the conflict. It is thus with much relief that the Duterte administration is very vocal about achieving peace in Mindanao thru diplomacy. There has been back-channeling with various stakeholders in Mindanao – the Moro National Liberation Front, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the lumads, and Christians, among others.
But while at this, it won’t hurt if the government pushes through with other programs and development projects that include education, health and livelihood, among others, in the conflict areas. A massive infrastructure program for Mindanao can be a key to spurring growth and putting an end to the Mindanao armed conflict. Higher road density leads to lower poverty incidence.
Mindanao has an existing national road network of 7,815 kilometers, but bulk of the region’s road infrastructure, about 60,000 kilometers, is considered local, with only 5.5 percent paved. More roads mean more access for both sellers and buyers. More roads will pump-prime local economies through investments and tourism.
An accelerated infrastructure development can bring to fruition the long-held belief that the region is the country’s land of promise. By increasing economic activities in Mindanao, we will be providing opportunities for the region to maximize its potential as a major growth area.
