THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday said it would undertake a massive voters education campaign in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) ahead of the region’s first-ever parliamentary elections in May 2025.
In a statement, Comelec spokesman John Rex Laudiangco said there is a need to undertake a voters education given the historical event set to commence next year in the Bangsamoro.
“For many of our kababayans in the region, the BARMM Parliamentary Elections is the culmination of the Bangsamoro peoples’ decades-long struggle for recognition and self-determination. Therefore, we deem it important to educate the BARMM voters on the new voting system to ensure the success of this historic electoral exercise,” said Laudiangco.
Foremost in their plans, the poll official said, is the holding of the BARMM Parliamentary Elections Voter Education Micro Summit in September.
During the Summit, Laudiangco said subject matter experts from the Comelec Education and Information Department and Law Department, as well as the Bangsamoro Electoral Office, are set to discuss in detail the rudiments of the regional parliamentary elections, such as the composition of the Bangsamoro Parliament, the system of proportional representation, the allocation of parliamentary seats, and the manner of their election, among others.
“We aim to gather the various stakeholders in the region such as, local government units, academic institutions, political parties, sectoral groups, civil society organizations, and citizens’ arms to synergize our efforts in ensuring an informed and educated electorate in the region,” said Laudiangco.
Similarly, he said several voter education teams shall be sent to all the BARMM provinces to conduct a voter education and information drive at the ground level.
“The voter education drive aims to educate the voters in the region, who will be voting for the first time the members of the Bangsamoro Parliament,” said Laudiangco.
Under the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), a total of 80 parliamentary seats are at stake in the May 2025 BARMM Parliamentary Elections.
The allocation of the parliamentary seats are 40 representatives of regional political parties, 32 representatives of parliamentary districts, and 8 sectoral representatives.
The BARMM Parliamentary Elections is set to be held simultaneously with the May 12 national and local polls.
