CSO Movement for Moral Governance calls for the National government not to interfere in BARMM’s Affairs in Choosing their Leader

COTABATO CITY (July 22, 2024) — The Civil
Society Organization Movement for Moral Governance (CSO-MMG) has organized a Press Conference today, here at Mall of Alnor, this City, and called the present administration of PBBM not to interfere in the Bangsamoro government affairs, especially in choosing leaders who will become the Chief Minister in BARMM since it is an autonomous region.

This began on July 2, 2024, when several Mayors from the Province of Lanao del Sur issued a Manifesto in support of Mayor Raida Maglangit’s accusation that Governor Reynaldo Tamayo, Jr. is intervening in the upcoming Parliamentary election.

Paragraph 8 of the said Manifesto stated that: “xxx in that meeting, Governor Tamayo declared that there will be reshuffling in the BARMM and even the Chief Minister will be replaced.”

Assuming this is true, the CSO Movement for Moral Governance and kindred civil society organizations in the Bangsamoro autonomous region and all over Mindanao express grave concern over this dangerous proposition.

It said that this is a classic divide-and-rule tactic, with far-reaching consequences, that will prove detrimental to regional autonomy and the sustainability of the peace process. It echoes the disastrous interference that fractured the Moro National Liberation Front in 2001, splintering the revolutionary front. We must not allow history to be repeated.

The Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) clearly outlines the selection process for the Chief Minister in Article VII, Section 4. It mandates that the “Chief Minister shall be elected by majority vote of all the members of the Parliament.” This is an internal matter that is well within the competency of the Bangsamoro Parliament to decide in the exercise of the Moro people’s collective right to self-determination, it continued.

The outdated practice of external influence in selecting regional leadership, reminiscent of the defunct Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, has no place in Bangsamoro’s new parliamentary system.

As a signatory to the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, the National Government has been a dependable partner of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in the earnest implementation of the peace agreement. Since its signing on March 27, 2014, the Bangsamoro peace agreement has become a decade-long testament to successful peacebuilding. It has set a record as one of the most enduring and successful peace processes in the world. To safeguard the hard-won gains of peace, all stakeholders must collaborate to uphold fair, clean, and credible elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.

The CSO MMG has urged national leaders to focus their time, energy, and resources on this end. It is crucial to protect the Bangsamoro people’s free choice in electing the regular members of Parliament.

It added that security forces and the Commission on Elections must proactively prepare to prevent violence. “The justice system, especially the Prosecutor’s office and courts, must be vigilant against attempts to misuse their power for harassment or intimidation of political rivals and candidates,” CSO-MMG pointed out.

“Additionally, the MILG should properly orient Barangay officials so that they cannot be used as pawns of violence and intimidation at the voting centers,” it said.

“Recognizing the vital role of independent election monitoring as a deterrence to violence and fraud, we urge the United Nations, the international community, civil society organizations, and all peace process supporters to establish their presence and monitoring mechanisms in the Bangsamoro autonomous region well in advance,” the statement said further.

According to CSO-MMG, there is so much to be done to ensure that the Bangsamoro Transition Authority peacefully transitions to the regular Bangsamoro Parliament. Let us all resolutely commit to maintaining peace and diligently safeguard the hard-fought gains of the peace process. (Tu Alid Alfonso, BMN/BangsamoroToday)