THE Executive branch wants the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) parliamentary elections postponed for only five months after the May national and local elections.
Senate President Francis Escudero and Senate deputy majority leader Joseph Victor Ejercito disclosed this yesterday after President Marcos Jr. certified as urgent the approval of the Senate bill on the BARMM polls deferment.
Ejercito said the Senate’s original proposal was to postpone the polls for six months, but senators took into consideration the recommendation of the Executive branch.
He said the Senate consulted with security officials, BARMM officials, and the office of the Executive Secretary, which all said that the five-month postponement will be enough time for the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to prepare for the BARMM elections.
“Kaya po tayo nag five months kasi sabi nila kaya naman (They said that it can be done after five months, that’s why we carried their recommendation),” Ejercito said at the Kapihan sa Senado media forum.
Escudero, in a Viber message to the media, said senators “carried” the Palace recommendation.
He renewed his call for the House of Representatives to adopt what would be the final version of Senate Bill No. 2942, which the Senate is set to approve on third and final reading on Monday.
“I don’t know (if the House will adopt the Senate version) but I would hope so, given that we carried the preference of the Executive branch which, in turn, was the product of much debate and discussion principally among our security and election officials,” he said.
The Senate approved SBN 2942 on second reading last Tuesday.
Under the Senate proposal, the BARMM polls will be deferred from May 12 to October 13, 2025. It likewise proposes that the next BARMM election be held and synchronized with the 2028 national elections, and every three years thereafter.
The House version, on the other hand, postponed the region’s parliamentary elections to May 11, 2026.
The BARMM elections is supposed to be held in May this year, simultaneous with the midterm polls.
Ejercito said the final date of the BARMM elections will be discussed during the bicameral conference discussions on the measure.
