A hearing on the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) at the Supreme Court (SC) resumes Friday despite Malacañang's decision to set aside and review the accord. 

Supreme Court (SC) spokesman Midas Marquez said the high court can still go ahead with the hearing and rule on the issues raised by the groups for and against the MOA-AD, which has been initialed by the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The SC may also declare the issue “moot and academic” after the Solicitor General informed the high court that government peace negotiators will no longer sign the initaled agreement.

Marquez said the high court would review the different arguments on the Solicitor General’s motion for dismissal before deciding whether to resume the scheduled oral arguments on the MOA-AD.

Marquez said SC justices may still continue with the hearing on the oral arguments because the issue has already been presented to the high court.
"Depende yan sa court tomorrow, kung itutuloy o hindi," he said.

Lourdes Sereno, counsel of some of the of MOA-AD oppositors, former Senator Franklin Drilon and Adel Tamano, presented during the August 15 five-hour oral argument that the MOA-AD does not even recognize the 1987 Constitution other than a reference to a "legal framework."

Sereno said the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE), which will govern the new Moro ancestral domain, is entitled to have its own judiciary and police. It can also enter into economic agreements and establish trade relations with other countries.

Sereno said the Philippines’ territorial integrity will be compromised by the MOA-AD since it gives the BJE control over the development and utilization of natural resources within its land, territorial waters, and air space.

Drilon wants to rule on constitutionality of MOA

Drilon, Sen. Manuel Roxas II and Tamano filed Thursday "an 18-page joint opposition" to Devanadera’s motion to dismiss the petitions against the MOA-AD.

Drilon said that they are not buying the government line that the petitions should be dismissed just because the government will no longer honor the MOA-AD.

"A statement by Solicitor General Devanedera said that the government will review the terms of the MOA or will renegotiate its terms is not tantamount to a commitment that they will not sign the same," he said.

The former Senate president said that "the results of the intended review or renegotiation of the MOA include among its distinct possibilities a decision to adopt the exact or equivalent MOA in contention, thus leaving very much alive, ripe and intact for adjudication the claims and prayers of the Petitions as well as the Petitions-in-Intervention."

Drilon said they want the SC to decide on the petitions declaring the MOA-AD unconstitutional rather than grant the Solicitor General’s motion to dismiss the petitions.

"It is clear that the government is now attempting to render moot the issues raised by the Petitioners and Intervenors by a weakly undertaking to conduct a review of the MOA," Drilon said on the contents of their petition. "If the Consolidated Petitions are summarily dismissed on the strength thereof, there will be no complete determination of Respondents' grave abuse of discretion and unconstitutional actions in excess of or without jurisdiction in agreeing to bind the Government to provisions constituting grave constitutional violations."

Pro MOA-AD

Meanwhile a motion to intervene in favor of the MOA-Ad was filed by the Muslim Multi-Sectoral Movement for Peace and Development Thursday.

In its petition, the group called for the lifting of the TRO issued by the SC on the MOA-AD’s signing.

The group also tagged those opposed to the MOA-AD as “spoilers to the peace process”.

The group said those opposed to the MOA-AD’s signing wanted Moros to remain “marginalized”. It also said those against the accord may have selfish interests to protect and would not want their areas to be included in the expanded autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao.

Petitions on MOA-AD

The MOA-AD proposes the creation of the BJE, which will cover the original territory of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. It will also include at least 700 other barangays in other parts of the region, subject to a law passed by Congress and voters' approval in a plebiscite.

Local officials from North Cotabato and Zamboanga City decried their inclusion in the BJE. They alleged lack of consultation even if the government’s peace panel has recorded more than 100 instances of consultations on the accord with the MILF.

Gov. Jesus Sacdalan and Vice Gov. Emmanuel Piñol of North Cotabato asked the Supreme Court to require the disclosure of the unsigned MOA on ancestral domain in their July 23 petition. Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat followed suit by also filing a petition for mandamus and prohibition with an urgent prayer for preliminary injunction.

GRP peace panel chair Rodolfo Garcia initialed the MOA-AD with MILF counterpart Mohagher Iqbal last July 27. The preliminary signing between the two was witnessed by Datuk Othman Abdul Raza, special adviser to the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

The final signing of the MOA-AD was scheduled on August 5. On August 4 however, the MOA-AD signing was stopped after the SC issued a TRO enjoining the GRP and MILF from inking the deal. -- With a report from Marieton Pacheco, ABS-CBN News and Purple Romero, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak