By Jovee Marie dela Cruz, Business Mirror

A SENATE leader on Wednesday said that it may still be possible for Congress to pass the proposed basic law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BLBar), if the House of Representatives can muster a quorum to tackle its own version of the bill.

Sen. Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Government, said in a statement that he is ready to answer the questions of his colleagues on the BLBar, as the Senate resumes its deliberation of the bill this week.

“Deliberations of the BLBar in the House had been stalled because of a lack of quorum. Now, if they can muster a quorum to proceed with their discussions, it may be possible to pass the bill before our session ends,” Marcos said.

“We [Senate] are still in the period of interpellation. After that we will take up amendments that the other senators will propose. Then, we will vote on it and pass it. I think the substitute bill that I wrote, once it has been properly amended by the senators…I think it should pass,” he added.

While he admitted that he has no control over the length of the interpellations, Marcos remains confident the Senate can find a consensus to speed up its deliberation on the measure meant to bring peace to Muslim Mindanao.

“The peace process cannot end. We cannot allow it to end. We must continue to find a way to bring peace to Muslim Mindanao,” the senator said.

Earlier, Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. admitted that the problem on lack of quorum is killing the peace measure.

He said the long line of lawmakers who want to interpellate has stretched the legislative process for the BLBar.

House Bill 5811, or the BLBar, is currently under the period of interpellation in the House of Representatives.

“The real problem here is that time is running out, because several lawmakers want to interpellate,” he said. Currently, there are at least 17 lawmakers who want to interpellate the peace measure.

Also, Centrist Democratic Party Rep. Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro, the chairman of the House ad hoc committee on the Bangsamoro basic law, hinted at the death of the peace measure owing to lack of material time, as the Lower House is facing a serious absenteeism problem.

Rodriguez said the quorum problem has hounded the House since July.

The BLBar aims to create the new Bangsamoro juridical entity, replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.