BARMM foregoes celebrating 1st year founding anniversary
Published Mar 30, 2020 12:00 am
By Ali Macabalang
COTABATO CITY – The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) has set aside long-planned festivities for its first founding anniversary in favor of delivering assistance and services needed to over four million poor constituents being affected by the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID).
The interim BARMM cabinet and parliament, led by Chief Minister Ahod “Hadji Murad” Ebrahim, announced in a statement on Sunday, March 29 ,that “the Bangsamoro government will instead focus on service delivery for its people today”.
(Keith Bacongco/ MANILA BULLETIN)
The BARMM bureaucracy was formally inaugurated by President Duterte on March 29 last year after its charter, Republic Act 11054, was ratified by resident voters in two plebiscites. The was enacted in July 2018 pursuant to two major accords inked by the government with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 2013 and 2014 that capped some 30 years of oft-stalled peace talks.
As early as December, BARMM had started to plan the festivities that would mark the first year of the autonomous government.
But given the dire times, Chief Minister Ebrahim explained last Sunday: “Aming napagtanto na mas prayoridad natin ang paglaban sa sakit (COVID-19) at matugunan ang pangangailangan ng ating mga kababayan.”
Lawyer Naguib Sinarimbo, BARMM Minister of Interior and Local Government, shared Ebrahim’s sentiments, saying that the “regional government will be placed in a ridiculous state if it festively celebrates while our people and nations across the globe are scrambling for safety from the threats of COVID-19.”
Thus, he said, the chief minister had ordered last month the purchase of substantial medical supplies and equipment worth several millions that were distributed last week to COVID-19 referral hospitals, and integrated health offices in the component provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.
The regional government, through its Ministry of Social Services and Development (MSSD), had also downloaded an initial amount of P7.3-million to the same component areas for their local government units to purchase relief foods and basic stuffs and distribute to their respective constituencies affected adversely by community quarantines.
Volunteers from the office of the chief minister have also assisted social health workers in distributing relief packs initially to five barangays here, involving 8,072 households so far. Door-to-door distributors targeted 16,000 families and all drivers of passenger motorcycles called “habal-habal” and tricycles in this city, according to the MSSD.
Relief packs, each worth P1,000 each, will also be distributed to 63 barangays in North Cotabato that are now part of the BARMM territory, the MSSD said.
Sinarimbo said the OCM allocated P8-million for 63 barangays in North Cotabato.
In his statement on Sunday, Ebrahim appealed to his constituents including political leaders to set aside politics and work cohesively in the state of emergency.
“Dahil sa kinakaharap nating krisis, amin pong tinatawagan ang lahat na isantabi muna ang lahat ng pagkakaiba-iba at magkaisa upang masugpo ang sakit na ito,” Ebrahim said.
“Malayo na tayo mula sa dating nakagisnan na kaguluhan, ngunit totoo rin na marami pa tayong kailangang gawin upang mas mapatatag ang ating Bangsamoro Government at mapalaganap ang mensahe ng Moral Governance,” he added.
(Keith Bacongco/ MANILA BULLETIN)
The BARMM bureaucracy was formally inaugurated by President Duterte on March 29 last year after its charter, Republic Act 11054, was ratified by resident voters in two plebiscites. The was enacted in July 2018 pursuant to two major accords inked by the government with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 2013 and 2014 that capped some 30 years of oft-stalled peace talks.
As early as December, BARMM had started to plan the festivities that would mark the first year of the autonomous government.
But given the dire times, Chief Minister Ebrahim explained last Sunday: “Aming napagtanto na mas prayoridad natin ang paglaban sa sakit (COVID-19) at matugunan ang pangangailangan ng ating mga kababayan.”
Lawyer Naguib Sinarimbo, BARMM Minister of Interior and Local Government, shared Ebrahim’s sentiments, saying that the “regional government will be placed in a ridiculous state if it festively celebrates while our people and nations across the globe are scrambling for safety from the threats of COVID-19.”
Thus, he said, the chief minister had ordered last month the purchase of substantial medical supplies and equipment worth several millions that were distributed last week to COVID-19 referral hospitals, and integrated health offices in the component provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.
The regional government, through its Ministry of Social Services and Development (MSSD), had also downloaded an initial amount of P7.3-million to the same component areas for their local government units to purchase relief foods and basic stuffs and distribute to their respective constituencies affected adversely by community quarantines.
Volunteers from the office of the chief minister have also assisted social health workers in distributing relief packs initially to five barangays here, involving 8,072 households so far. Door-to-door distributors targeted 16,000 families and all drivers of passenger motorcycles called “habal-habal” and tricycles in this city, according to the MSSD.
Relief packs, each worth P1,000 each, will also be distributed to 63 barangays in North Cotabato that are now part of the BARMM territory, the MSSD said.
Sinarimbo said the OCM allocated P8-million for 63 barangays in North Cotabato.
In his statement on Sunday, Ebrahim appealed to his constituents including political leaders to set aside politics and work cohesively in the state of emergency.
“Dahil sa kinakaharap nating krisis, amin pong tinatawagan ang lahat na isantabi muna ang lahat ng pagkakaiba-iba at magkaisa upang masugpo ang sakit na ito,” Ebrahim said.
“Malayo na tayo mula sa dating nakagisnan na kaguluhan, ngunit totoo rin na marami pa tayong kailangang gawin upang mas mapatatag ang ating Bangsamoro Government at mapalaganap ang mensahe ng Moral Governance,” he added.