COTABATO CITY, Philippines – The Bangsamoro parliament has set a December deadline to pass a new parliamentary districting law, a prerequisite for the region’s first regular elections now planned for March 2026, Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Floor Leader Jet Lim said on Monday, December 1.

Lim said they have agreed that the measure must be finalized before year-end.

The urgency follows a Supreme Court ruling in late September that resulted in the postponement of the first regional parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) last October.

The decision struck down Bangsamoro Autonomy Act (BAA) 77 as unconstitutional, blocking its redistricting of parliamentary seats in the Bangsamoro region and ruling that the earlier law, BAA 58, cannot be reinstated. It directed the BTA to pass a new valid districting law and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to hold the parliamentary elections by March 31, 2026.

The two voided BARMM laws were an offshoot of an 2024 SC decision that excluded Sulu province from the Muslim-majority region. That ruling meant the removal of seven parliamentary seats originally intended for Sulu and requiring a complete reconfiguration of legislative districts.

Legal challenge

BARMM interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua said the regional government is now working to pass a districting law that would withstand legal scrutiny.

“We must turn this legal challenge into an opportunity to ensure that our first parliamentary election is legally airtight and truly representative,” Macacua said. “Our focus now is to pass a districting law that will stand judicial scrutiny before 2025 ends.”

He also urged the region’s parliament to pass the BARMM budget, submitted on October 30, which includes funding for the March 2026 elections.

Currently, six versions of the proposed districting law are being harmonized by parliamentary committees.

Consultations underway

The BTA has started public consultations to ensure the law it would pass would meet constitutional standards. Following an initial session in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi on November 6, further meetings are scheduled for December 4 in the Special Geographic Area, Maguindanao del Sur, and Basilan, and December 7 in Maguindanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, and Cotabato City.

“The BTA Parliament encourages stakeholders and the general public to actively participate in the ongoing consultations to help shape a fair, representative, and legally sound parliamentary districting system,” Lim said.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia said the poll body would not be able to proceed without a valid map of parliamentary districts. 

“The Comelec is prepared to conduct the elections by March 31, 2026, provided the BTA passes the new law in time,” Garcia said.

Warnings

MILF peace implementing panel chairman and BTA member Mohagher Iqbal said the delay was a “force majeure,” but added that it must be the last extension for the interim regional government. 

“When you are elected by the people, you have more legitimacy. An appointed authority is less powerful,” Iqbal said.

Civil society groups echoed the concern. The Institute for Autonomy and Governance earlier warned that an “indefinite transition” weakens accountability, while former government peace chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer cautioned that another postponement could erode public trust in the peace agreement between the government and the MILF. – Rappler.com