THE people of Maguindanao del Sur are against moves by lawmakers to postpone the first Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) parliamentary elections to 2026, Gov. Bai Mariam Mangudadatu told senators yesterday.
Speaking during the hearing of the Senate Committee on Local Government, Mangudadatu said deferring the elections scheduled for May 2025 would deprive the people of the province of their right to choose their leaders.
Mangudadatu also said President Marcos Jr. has repeatedly “promised” that the BARMM elections will proceed as scheduled.
“The President said last February 2, 2024, that the first BARMM elections next year should be a success. The President said last April 20, 2024, that the BARMM election will be continued during the anniversary celebration of the comprehensive agreement of the Bangsamoro held in Barira, Maguindanao. Why the sudden change?” she said.
“It seems that we are denying the Bangsamoro people their right to choose their own leaders. The bill also allows the same people to serve for seven years without any election or mandate from the people,” she added.
Senate President Francis Escudero filed last Monday Senate Bill No. 2862 proposing to reset the first regular BARMM elections to May 11, 2026. He cited as a compelling reason the recent ruling of the Supreme Court excluding the province of Sulu from the region’s coverage.
“This ruling may require a substantial correction of existing laws, particularly RA No. 11054 (the Bangsamoro Organic Law) and the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Districts Act of 2024 (BAA no. 58, 2024) referring to the allocation of the statutory mandated eighty (80) seats in the Bangsamoro Parliament,” he said.
Mangudadatu said Sulu’s exclusion from the BARMM should not be used to justify the proposed postponement.
Presidential adviser on peace, reconciliation, and unity Carlito Galvez said delaying the BARMM elections for at least one year will give the government ample time to lay out measures to ensure security in the region.
Galvez said enough time should also be given to transition Sulu, of which more than 10,000 provincial employees will be affected by the SC ruling.
Commission on Elections chairman George Garcia said the issue on the proposed postponement of the BARMM elections should be resolved immediately, as the poll body will start printing the ballots for next year’s midterm elections by the second week of December.
He said the Comelec needs to know how many parliamentary seats will be included in the ballots since under the former BARMM, there are 80 seats. With the exit of Sulu in the BARMM, there will only be 73 seats.
Sen. Joseph Victor Ejercito, panel chairman, said they will try to come up with a committee report by the end of the month so the Comelec’s deadline will be met.
Ejercito said he did not expect that crafting a measure on the proposed postponement will be challenging.
Aside from the legal issues related to the proposal, he said senators also have to find time to hold the hearing especially since the Senate is busy with the deliberations on the proposed 2025 national budget.
Meanwhile, the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) yesterday expressed strong opposition to proposals to postpone the BARMM polls, saying doing so will undermine the region’s democratic process.
In a statement, LENTE said the BPE 2025 must push through as provided by the 1987 Constitution, which guarantees the people’s right to elect their leaders.
“The right of suffrage mandates that elections are genuine and periodic to affirm the people’s will in governance. Delaying elections risks undermining the democratic process by deferring the voters’ voice and leaving interim officials without a strong and direct mandate from the people,” said LENTE.
“Regular, periodic elections are fundamental to democracy and should only be postponed under truly exceptional and compelling circumstances,” it also said.
The LENTE said postponement of the BPE is also against the spirit of the peace process between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), noting that the holding of the BPE is as an essential part of the peace process that has spanned decades and countless sacrifices.
“This first election represents a significant step towards providing the Bangsamoro people an opportunity to exercise the right to self-determination and autonomy, which they have long fought for and have unjustifiably been deprived of,” said LENTE.
“Undermining this process by again postponing elections may further deprive the Bangsamoro and the Philippines of the peace both have long yearned for,” it added.
LENTE also noted that the Comelec has repeatedly expressed its readiness to conduct the BPE alongside the May 2025 national and local polls.
“These pronouncements should be enough to dismiss the extension justification to give more time for the Comelec to prepare for the 2025 BARMM Parliamentary Elections,” it said.
Proof of this, it said, is the ongoing filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) for parliamentary district representatives and certificates of acceptance of nomination (CANs) for regional parliamentary political parties.
As of yesterday (Thursday), there are already 54 aspirants for parliamentary district representatives, including 20 in Lanao del Sur, 11 in Maguindanao del Norte, 10 in Basilan, 8 in Maguindanao del Sur, 4 in Tawi-Tawi, and 1 in the Special Geographic Area (SGA) in Cotabato. – With Gerard Naval
Only one regional parliamentary political party has filed its CAN and List of Nominees as well as Manifestation of Intent to Participate in the Parliamentary Elections (MIP-PE).
The deadline for the filing of COCs and CANs in the BPE is on November 9.
