DAVAO CITY - Local government units in Lanao del Sur expressed support for the three-year extension of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA).
On Wednesday (Jan 20) the City Council of Marawi passed Resolution No. 058-01. The resolution states that the local government believes “with trust and confidence in the capacity of the BTA to fulfil its mandate.”
The City Council of Marawi City believes that the extension of the transition period "will afford the BTA sufficient time to continue performing its powers and functions and complete its mandate."
The resolution also proposed the city’s representation to the BTA as one of the major cities of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
On Tuesday, January 19, Lanao del Sur's league of municipalities also expressed their support for the extension of the transition period.
“We would like to assure the Bangsamoro Government that we are one with you in the aspirations for self-determination and moral governance,” said Provincial Governor Mamintal Alonto-Adiong, Jr.
In a press conference on Monday, January 18, BARMM Education Minister Mohagher Iqbal said the extension of the BTA is "not about power".
"It is also not about trying to extend our presence in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM),” he said.
He added that the transition will ensure that “the foundation of peace shall be well-established on the ground" and for the interim government to fully accomplish its functions and duties.
In a statement, the Bangsamoro Government said that the BTA passed a resolution last November 17, 2020 "urging Congress to extend the transition period by another three years."
In Congress, at least five bills supporting the resolution of the BTA have been filed including those filed by Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda, Maguindanao Rep. Esmael Mangudadatu, Lanao del Norte Rep. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo, House Majority Leader Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, and Deputy Speaker Isidro Ungab of Davao City.