Multisectoral dialogue held to decide on fate of BARMM polls

IAG executive director Benedicto Bacani (right) presides over a dialogue among BARMM stakeholders about the fate of the Oct. 13 regional elections. Beside him is Comelec Chair George Garcia. PHOTO FROM IAG

COTABATO CITY—The non-government groups Institute of Autonomy and Governance (IAG) and Independent Election Monitoring Center (IEMC) convened a multisectoral forum and dialogue on Thursday to ascertain the fate of the regional parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

The gathering was held at the New World Hotel in Makati City amid the continued suspension by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) of its preparations for the Oct. 13 polls.

The suspension came on the heels of a temporary restraining order issued by the Supreme Court on the implementation of Bangsamoro Autonomy Act No. 77, which created new parliamentary districts in the BARMM.

Aside from the Comelec, the gathering was also attended by representatives of regional political parties, the regional parliament, the security sector, Congress, and key national government agencies.

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Beyond discussing the status of the regional polls, the dialogue, which was presided over by IAG executive director Benedicto Bacani, also surfaced the best pathways forward amid the current legal impasse.

Earlier, the IEMC had expressed support to the Comelec’s decision to halt poll preparations.

Election monitors back Comelec’s decision to suspend poll preparations.

“Comelec is correct in asserting that neither BAA 77 nor the repealed BAA 58 can serve as a legal foundation for the parliamentary district elections scheduled for October 13,” IEMC said.

“We strongly urge the Supreme Court and the Comelec to immediately resolve the outstanding legal issues surrounding the Regional Parliamentary Elections in the BARMM so that the elections can proceed on October 13, or at the earliest possible date thereafter,” it added.

Bacani had said that they have advocated for the holding of the polls on a viable schedule soonest as repeated postponements of elections in the BARMM undermine the integrity of the electoral process.

“It also erodes the public’s trust in elections as a vital means of citizen expression and representation in governance,” Bacani had said.

IEMC is a Comelec-recognized monitor of the regional elections composed of the IAG, National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections, Notre Dame Broadcasting Corporation, Notre Dame University, Notre Dame of Midsayap College, Coalition for Social Accountability and Transparency, Climate Conflict Action, and the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting–Cotabato City.