MARAWI CITY (PIA) — Bangsamoro Spokesperson Mohd Asnin Pendatun emphasized Wednesday that the Bangsamoro Government welcomes the certificate of urgency of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos (PBBM) Jr. of the Senate Bill (SB) No. 2942, resetting the pioneering parliamentary polls in the autonomous region to Oct. 2025.
“We welcome the development that there is a certificate of urgency from PBBM regarding the rescheduling of the parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM),” said Pendatun, who is also the Cabinet Secretary of the interim government, in his DZBB interview.
“We look forward to the final date so that we can refocus and zero in with the adjustments based on the new schedule of the polls,” he added.
On Jan. 29, Malacañang confirmed that the President certified SB No. 2942—the legal measure that aims to reschedule the BARMM parliamentary elections to October 2025 instead of May this year—which was approved Tuesday by the Senate on the second reading.
The House of Representatives, on the other hand, approved in Dec. 2024 the House Bill (HB) No. 11144, specifying the conduct of the said polls to May 2026, exactly one year from the original date.
Pendatun highlighted that the “different” versions of the bills from both Houses will be refined through a bicameral conference committee meeting, subsequently saying, “It’s a big deal that there is a certification of urgency, for it gives a signal that this (parliamentary election) is the priority of the National Government and the Leadership.”
Implications of the Postponement
The Spokesperson mentioned that the “extra” period may result in the reapportionment of the seven (7) parliamentary districts in Sulu to the other existing areas in the BARMM.
On Sept. 9, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that Sulu province be severed from the autonomous region after the province cast 54 percent negative votes in the 2019 plebiscite that excluded it from the region.
Additionally, the rescheduling will allow the National and Bangsamoro Governments, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), and the security forces to focus on the parliamentary polls, leading to peaceful, honest, and credible elections.
“As said, all eyes on BARMM,” Pendatun stressed, reassuring that the regional government will continue the positive growth and momentum of the BARMM.
“For all intents and purposes, we can show that the greater autonomy given to BARMM is the right track to take towards peace and development,” he said. (BIO/PIA-10 Lanao del Sur)
