Palace hits Sison’s ‘delusional’ claim; insists there is no vote-buying, coercion on BOL plebiscite

FILE: Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo (Photo: Office of the Presidential Spokesperson/Facebook)

Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo slammed exiled communist leader Jose Maria “Joma” Sison for having a “delusional analysis” after the latter claimed that the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) will be ratified because of President Rodrigo Duterte’s influence and vote-buying.

“Communist Party of the Philippines Founding Chairperson Jose Ma. Sison is once again talking nonsense by engaging in a delusional analysis on a political event that further exposes his blissful ignorance,” Panelo said in a statement on Tuesday, January 22.

“The voters will ratify the BOL, as we hope and expect, not because of vote buying and presidential coercive influence, as falsely claimed by Sison, but due to the electorate’s belief that its ratification will yield the long desired growth and development that remain elusive in Mindanao,” he added.

Sison, on Monday, said it is “highly probable” that many Mindanaoans will be in favor of the BOL because of Duterte’s “advantageous position,” noting the effect of martial law in Mindanao, control of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), and deployment of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in so-called “trouble spots.”

He added that voters will be paid P200 per vote and P1,000 for each vote buying agent, adding “payments in the millions to Comelec officials and to certain governors, congressmen, and mayors.”

Once approved through the plebiscite, the BOL will create the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), which will replace the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

In its latest survey conducted on December 16 to 19, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) revealed that 79 percent of Muslims nationwide are in favor of the approval of the BOL in the 2019 plebiscite, with 67 percent of them said they “definitely want it” and 12 percent of Muslims said they ” somewhat want it.”

[READ: SWS: Most Muslims in PH favor BOL approval]

Reacting to this, Panelo said such figure only indicates that Bangsamoro people “have enough of war, terrorism and poverty” and hungry for “peace and thirst for development in Mindanao.

“We hope that the aspiration of our Muslim brothers and sisters for a peaceful and progressive Bangsamoro region will commence its realization following the ratification of the BOL,” the Palace official had said.