MILF, peace body laud Marcos’ decision to push through with Bangsamoro polls in October
COTABATO CITY—Moro Islamic LIberation Front (MILF) chair Ahod Ebrahim and Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. separately welcomed President Marcos’ pronouncement affirming his commitment to push through with the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections in October amid calls for its postponement.
Ebrahim said the MILF expressed its deep gratitude to the President for stressing the importance of the historic parliamentary election for the success of the Bangsamoro peace process.
“Coming from no less than the highest official of the land, the President’s clear and unequivocal statement should put to rest all speculations of another extension or postponement,” Ebrahim said in a statement on Saturday.
He then rallied “all stakeholders to work towards ensuring a free, fair and credible election worthy of the aspirations of the Bangsamoro people.”
Ebrahim issued the statement after the President declared during a news conference while on state visit in India, that he would sign the bill postponing the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections to allow the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to focus on the first-ever regular parliamentary polls in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Most sensible
Mr. Marcos said the decision would be the “most sensible” course of action, given that the country just concluded the midterm elections and will soon hold the landmark the BARMM polls on Oct. 13.
“If that election fails, malaking failure ‘yan sa peace process. Kaya’t kailangang-kailangang maging matagumpay ang pagganap ng halalan ng BARMM (that will be a big failure in the peace process, that’s why the BARMM elections need to be successful),” he added.
Ebrahim said the MILF expressed its deep gratitude to the President for underscoring the vital importance of this historic parliamentary election to the overall success of the Bangsamoro peace process.
After six years of transition, this election will mark the beginning of a new era with the assumption of democratically elected members of the Bangsamoro Parliament, Ebrahim added.
He cited how the MILF shifted its struggle for self-determination from using bullets to using ballots and the democratic process, through its political party, the United Bangsamoro Justice Party.
‘Not an option’
Galvez, in a statement over the weekend, also lauded the President’s assurance that the first parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro would push through, stressing that “failed Bangsamoro polls [are] not an option.”
“The President’s statement is a powerful affirmation of our shared commitment to the Bangsamoro peace process,” Galvez said.
He said Marcos sent a clear message the national government will ensure the Bangsamoro people can elect their own leaders and shape their future.
The BARMM parliamentary elections, mandated under Republic Act No. 12123 signed in February, will mark the region’s shift from an appointive to an elected parliamentary government under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
Galvez said the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity that he heads, in partnership with Comelec, the Presidential Task Force on Media Security and the BARMM Information Office, will conduct information, education and communication campaigns for journalists in Mindanao to boost coverage accuracy and safety during the historic polls. —WITH REPORTS FROM PNA
