COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 23 Aug)— The chances to coincide the proposed plebiscite of the approved eight towns of the Special Geographic Area (SGA) of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) into the scheduled October 30th Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (BSK) elections is too slim.
Lawyer Ray Sumalipao, regional director of Commission on Elections in the BARMM, said that time constraint, especially on the procurement process, will be the key issue in holding the plebiscite simultaneous with the BSK elections.
“It would be too hard given we only have two months left and knowing the procurement law we have in the country undergoes stiff process for the forms, funds and other needed resources,” Sumalipao said in a phone interview.
Last week the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), the legislative body of the Bangsamoro government, approved for the third and final reading bill Nos. 129 to 136, aimed at establishing eight municipalities for the creation of eight SGA towns, namely, Pahamuddin, Kadayangan, Nabalawag, Old Kaabakan, Kapalawan, Malidegao, Tugunan, and Ligawasan.
These bills have been a priority of BARMM Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim to address the needs and aspirations of the SGA’s residents.
Sixty-three barangays from Cotabato province in Region 12 compose the SGA when they decided to join the Bangsamoro region in a plebiscite in 2019.
These barangay were originally part of the municipalities of Aleosan, Carmen, Kabacan, Midsayap, Pikit, and Pigcawayan.
The creation of the newly created municipalities will be determined by a majority vote of eligible residents in a plebiscite.
According to a BTA press release, the plebiscite is scheduled to be conducted simultaneously with the 2023 barangay elections.
The Comelec, through the Bangsamoro Electoral Office, will conduct and supervise the plebiscite, with expenses drawn from the available funds of the current fiscal year appropriations of the Bangsamoro government.
Under the bills, the Bangsamoro government is mandated to provide financial assistance for the administration and operation of the municipalities each month until they receive their share in the national tax allotment, subject to usual accounting and auditing rules and regulations. (Ferdinandh Cabrera / MindaNews)
