It’s final. The parliamentary election in the BARMM in May 2025, synchronized with the national and local polls, is a go.

President Bongbong Marcos’ statement could not be clearer when he told BARMM officials to prepare for the election and “make this very historical and important event a success.” He made the statement in his speech at the Inter-governmental Relations Board meeting last 8 February before leaders of the BARMM.

Recall that in the past months, there were speculations the polls would be postponed again. The default excuse was that the normalization process, as agreed on in the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, was not yet complete, and the decommissioning of rebels was still ongoing.

In fact, there are reports of a proposed postponement bill filed in the Senate amid intense lobbying by BARMM leaders. This is not surprising to us. The regional election in the autonomous region had been postponed several times starting during the ARMM and now BARMM.

The main reason given is that elections in the region are historically bloody and disruptive, so national leaders thought postponing them would serve the ends of peace and stability. Democrats decried this as violative of the political values on which our government system is founded — it assaults the people’s right to choose their leaders. The current BARMM officials were appointed by the President and don’t enjoy the people’s mandate.

Even before that statement by the President, the electoral kettle in Morolandia was already brewing. Leaders are in a frenzy, strategizing on how to deal with the maiden parliamentary election. It will be the first in the region, and its success will tell whether the choice of a parliamentary structure, a peculiar system with which Filipinos are unfamiliar, was the right one. How it will impact the peace and stability of the region is still anybody’s guess, given its turbulent electoral history.

There is also now a proliferation of party-list organizations. The Bangsamoro Organic Law and the Bangsamoro Electoral Code provide for party-list representation. We wrote earlier about the preparations of these organizations, which have started campaigning through organized assemblies. This is a healthy sign of a robust democracy, and the election should be shielded from any vestiges of irregularity.

There are, however, some lingering unresolved questions that bother observers. Pending before the Supreme Court is a petition filed by Muslim professionals — led by lawyer Jimmy Pansar, president of the Municipal Mayors League of Lanao del Sur — questioning the constitutionality of some of the provisions of the BEC. What will happen if the Supreme Court delays its ruling and a decision favorable to the petition comes after the election? How can we untangle the legal web this would have created?

Also, there are leaders of the rebel MILF who want to participate in the election either by running or voting but are disqualified because of pending political and criminal cases filed against them. What if the processing of their applications by the Amnesty Commission is not acted upon before the election or, worse, denied?

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity must likewise hasten the decommissioning of the rebel MILF before the 2025 parliamentary election. The MILF has registered a political party, the United Bangsamoro Justice Party, and will definitely field candidates.

How can the playing field be leveled with them still carrying their firearms? Where can you find an electoral contest where one party is allowed to brandish their guns in public under the pretext of the decommissioning of their firearms not having been completed?

This is the main issue raised by the Bangsamoro Governors Caucus, a source of irritants with the leadership of the BARMM and a possible flashpoint in the 2025 BARMM election.

In the meantime, brace yourselves, dear readers, to witness an electoral battle royale featuring the well-entrenched dynastic governors and candidates of the UBJP under the aegis of the BARMM leadership.

amb_mac_lanto@yahoo.com