DON'T TAKE THE SABAH STANDOFF LIGHTLY

Don’t take the Sabah standoff lightly, ladies and gentlemen.

It has CONFRONTATIONAL, DIPLOMATIC and POLITICAL implications which are both DESPICABLE and HORRENDOUS once they happen, if these have not occurred yet.

An inquirer.net story said Sultan Jamalul Kiram III has declared that his men, who had crossed into Lahad Datu in Sabah, were staying put.

Question: If, fighting erupts between Kiram’s men and Malaysian security forces, and even some of his men die in the process, what will our government do? Kiram’s people are Filipino citizens and it’s the duty of PNoy to protect and defend them anytime, anywhere.

Will we strike back at Malaysia? If we don’t, and Kiram and the rest of his people and supporters from Muslim Mindanao attack on their own, what will the government do?

Will PNoy and his boys just sit back and watch them fight, and die?

If Kiram and his followers turn on Malaysians and Malaysian interests here at home, how will the government respond? Is PNoy and his boys ready for such an eventuality?

I’m not a Muslim but I dare raise these scenarios because I know for a fact that for Muslims, they would rather die than to live in disgrace.

Should the crisis escalate and Malaysia uses diplomatic pressure on us, like severing ties or agreements, to force us to get Kiram’s followers out of Sabah, is our government ready?

Most of all, PNoy and his boys had better explain at once Kiram’s claim that they had been left out, and had not even been consulted, on the framework agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which paves the way for an autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao.

What was the reason behind this?

The MILF is one of the biggest groups in Mindanao but it DOES NOT REPRESENT OR SPEAK for the ENTIRE MUSLIM population in the region. Remember, even Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF)  head Nur Misuari has protested against the framework agreement and HAS NOT RULED OUT any retaliatory measure on his part.

So WHAT makes the MILF SO SPECIAL to  Pnoy and his boys?

What are the legal, moral, and geographical grounds for considering the MILF as the BE-ALL and END-ALL for Muslim Mindanao? Who’s the brains, anyway,  behind the non-consultation of Kiram, Misuari and other parties of interest in the framework agreement?

If Kiram, Misuari and/or any other Muslim group resort to armed action to protest and disregard any accord between the MILF and the government, what happens next?

The Sabah standoff is a lot, lot deeper than we see it.

Believe me, guys, this is one crisis we should not take our eyes off, until it is resolved. 30