IN a bid to beat the clock on a crucial electoral deadline, Interim Chief Minister (ICM) Abdulraof Macacua has formally requested the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) parliament to convene a special session during the final three days of December.
The move is a last-ditch effort to pass the proposed Barmm districting law before the year ends, a requirement vital for the region's first-ever parliamentary elections.
Amid concerns from stakeholders regarding poll delays and tight timelines, Macacua filed a letter on Dec. 22 addressed to Speaker Mohammad S. Yacob. Invoking Rule III, Section 7 of the BTA parliament’s rules and procedures, Macacua is seeking approval for a special session on Dec. 29, 2025.
“And, if necessary, with possible extensions on December 30 and 31,” wrote Macacua.
The request aims to resume discussion and consultation on the proposed bills. These measures are necessary to provide a districting law that will guide the distribution of parliamentary districts in the region and establish a foundational law for the Bangsamoro elections next year.
“This is to continue the deliberations on the proposed bill providing for the redistricting of parliamentary districts in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao,” Macacua stated in his letter.
Macacua urged Speaker Yacob to give favorable consideration to what he described as an "important and urgent request."
This development comes after the BTA Parliament ended its regular session on Dec. 18 without passing the districting bill, despite earlier commitments to enact it before the end of the year in compliance with a Supreme Court directive.
Without a special session, the legislature is adjourned for the holiday break and is not set to resume regular sessions until January 2026.
Currently, at least six districting bills have been consolidated into BTA Bill No. 415. The bill, which provides for 32 single-member parliamentary districts, has been approved at the committee level and forwarded to the plenary for deliberations.
However, the scramble to pass the bill before year-end has drawn concern from several officials citing legal constraints and the risk of further stalling the electoral process.
Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal ‘Bombit’ Adiong has warned that failure to meet prescribed timelines could disenfranchise voters and undermine the region’s transition to a fully elected government.
Adiong noted that the majority of provincial governors in Barmm want the parliamentary elections to proceed as scheduled in March 2026. He stressed that communities across the region are eager to choose their own leaders after years under an interim political arrangement.
“If you ask the people, they already want to choose their own leaders. That is why we hope the districting [sic] bill will be finalized soon so it can be scheduled in Congress and enacted into law,” Adiong said.
The governor added that nearly all governors share the view that elections should not be postponed again. (CBC)
