Senator Imee Marcos has expressed her reservations on the proposal to postpone the elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) from 2022 to 2025.
(Senate of the Philippines / MANILA BULLETIN)
At the hearing of the Senate local government committee on the proposal Wednesday, March 10, Marcos warned the deferment of the elections would also delay the development of the region, which, she pointed out, was the main purpose of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).
Under the BOL, the BARMM elections must take place at the same time as national and local elections in May, 2022.
"To my mind, given the purpose of this law, which is to rectify historical injustice – politically, militarilly, as well as economically – it is important that we conduct these elections at the soonest possible time," said Marcos, who chairs the Senate's electoral reforms committee.
She said the decommissioning of militants and weapons and the normalization in the region would not be possible "without full political legitimacy, without inclusive governance, without the complete exercise of the voting rights of the people." "This was the purpose of the " she pointed out.
Instead, Marcos proposed the "compromise" that the BARMM elections be conducted "even a few months or a year after the national elections of 2022".
She said this would still allow authorities to fulfill the law's objective and at the same time allow the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) – the region's interim government – to catch up with the transition that was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"If 2022 is indeed too soon, postponing and establishing a date for the regional election very closely may provide its own advantages," she said.
Besides, Marcos said the BARMM elections will be handled by the Commission on Elections (Comelec), through the Bangsamoro Electoral Office, which is under its supervision and control.
She also mentioned that despite the pandemic, the Comelec managed to prepare for the plebiscite to ratify the law that divides Palawan into three provinces. The plebiscite will be held on Saturday, March 13.
The poll body and the national government, she added, "have not hesistated" in organizing the 2022 elections, including the registration of overseas Filipino worker (OFW) voters.
"If we are to abide by the organic law as well as the Comelec's jurisdiction, it would appear that the Comelec's policy… that we continue with all the elections as close to the stipulated dates as possible," Marcos said.
"Only after elections will the BARMM be able to focus on normalization that has been stymied by the pandemic, and to address the region’s unique and difficult circumstances," she maintained.