United in Serving the People: ARMM Regional Governor Mujiv Hataman's Congratulatory Message to President-Elect Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President-Elect Leni Robredo

Today, May 30, 2016, we turn another page in our history as we welcome those who will be at the forefront in leading our country for the next six years.

We would like to extend our sincerest congratulations to our President-elect, Rodrigo Duterte, and our Vice President-Elect, Leni Robredo. Both of them have proven their mettle in empowering the oppressed and marginalized sectors of society, and both of them have made it a priority to empower the people in their years of public service

Official election figures show that both President-elect Duterte and Vice President-elect Robredo have won the trust of the Bangsamoro people. With a solid track record as local officials, both of them represent an administration that will find its strength in participatory governance and empowered local government units. Their win, therefore, bears greater significance when placed beside our collective effort towards a national government where regions like the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) can expect their peoples' voices to be heard and where the concerns of those in the regions are part and parcel of the national agenda.

Here in the ARMM, we have done much in more than seventeen years of working together towards peace, and the next six years bring much promise. Upon taking the helm of the national government, we hope that the commitment of both our president-elect and vice president-elect have expressed during the campaign with regard to the peace process will bear fruit. May their leadership translate to further acknowledging the historical injustices committed against the people of Mindanao, to empowering those whose histories are yet to find a place in the national narrative, and to recognizing the rights of the people, including the right to self-determination.

We share in their victory, and we find hope in the leadership that President-elect Duterte and Vice President-elect Robredo will bring to the table. Together, we look forward to bringing this country closer to a future where lasting peace and genuine justice for all is not just an aspiration but a way of life.

​Iron-fisted Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte proclaimed as 16th Philippines President

In a joint session on Monday afternoon, Congress officially proclaimed lawyer iron-fisted Mayor Rodrigo Duterte of the southern city of Davao as the country’s 16th President and lawyer Camarines Sur Congresswoman Leni Robredo as the 14th Vice President.

But Duterte, 71, standard bearer of the Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino (PDP-Laban), skipped his own proclamation at the House of Representatives instead, his lawyers Salvador Panelo and Vitaliano Aguirre represented him in the proclamation rites, alongside the vice president-elect.

According to Philippine Daily Inquirer report, on the day of his proclamation as the new President of the Philippines, Duterte buckled down to work as mayor of Davao City, signing papers and barking orders.

It said the newly proclaimed president has a few weeks left before he leaves his office and goes to Malacañang Palace, the official residence and principal workplace of the country's chief executive.

“He is doing his chores as mayor of Davao. Madami pang (there are still plenty of) documents for signature,” Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Duterte’s executive assistant Bong Go as saying.

Duterte, also ​considered as the tough-talking mayor of Davao City, said during a media briefing at a hotel in Davao City that he had never attended any of his proclamations in his 30 years in public office.

The Constitution does not mandate for the presidential winners to be present or to take their oath at Congress.

Senator Franklin Drilon had earlier explained to reporters that Duterte's attendance during the proclamation was personal and no legal effect if he did not attend in the proclamation.

However, Drilon, the Senate president and vice chairman of the ruling administration Liberal Party who topped the senatorial elections, cited that the proclamation of president and vice president in the Congress as a tradition, "an institution that strengthen our democracy."

Duterte, the first President to hail from Mindanao, won the presidency by a landslide with 16,601,997 votes. Far behind Duterte was Liberal Party standard-bearer Mar Roxas II, who got 9,978,175 votes.

In the vice presidential race, Robredo of the administration LP outpaced closest rival Senator Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. by only over 200,000 votes and four other candidates.

Duterte gave a message in Davao City after the proclamation. MGP News

Duterte nixes barangay polls postponement

Incoming President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday said he does not favor the postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections this October 2016.

Duterte said postponing the barangay elections will leave officials acting in a holdover capacity.

“I’m not in favor. The law says that when you end there, you end there,” Duterte told reporters.

Duterte said postponing the barangay and SK polls would require a new piece of legislation, a position shared by lawmakers and even Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Andres Bautista himself.

Bautista earlier said primary considerations in postponing the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections include election fatigue as the 2016 national and local elections have just been concluded.

Being manual, it is also labor-intensive and will entail a lot of costs, he added.

Duterte eyes railway systems as his ‘first big project’



Incoming President Rodrigo Duterte sets his eyes on railway systems in Luzon and in Mindanao as his "first big project" as president.Duterte told reporters at a press briefing in Davao City on Saturday evening that the details of the railway project have not yet been drawn up, a dzBB radio report said Sunday morning.But Duterte said other countries need to be involved in such a big project for lack national budget, the report added."Maybe China," Duterte was quoted as saying when pressed on what country he had in mind for the railway project.Duterte said the railway systems would connect Manila-Nueva Vizcaya in Central Luzon, Manila-Sorsogon, Manila-Batangas and for the whole of Mindanao.

Survey: 10.5M Filipino families are still poor

Pegged at ‘multi-year lows’, about 10.5 million Filipino families remained poor in the first quarter of the year, while some 6.9 million could barely have enough food to eat, according to the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

The survey, conducted between March 30 and April 2, showed that the poverty and food poverty figure were “multi-year lows” under the Aquino administration, Manila Times reported.

The survey also reportedly revealed that 46 percent of respondents, or about 10.5 million families, rated themselves mahirap or poor, an improvement from the 50 percent or 11.2 million in December 2015.

SWS noted the 46 percent was the lowest in over four years or since December 2011’s 45 percent, reflecting drops across all regions except in Mindanao, the report said.

“The four-point decline in self-rated poverty rate nationwide in the first quarter of 2016 was because of a decline in the Visayas, Metro Manila and Balance Luzon, combined with a 2-point rise in Mindanao,” SWS reportedly said.

The highest self-rated poverty was at 55 percent in March 2012, December 2013 and June and September 2014, said the news portal.

The SWS survey also reportedly found that 31 percent or an estimated 6.9 million families consider the type of food they eat as “food-poor,” two points below the 33 percent or 7.4 million logged in December last year.

It matched the record low of 31 percent first recorded in March 2010.

The SWS attributed the April dip to the reported declines in self-rated food poverty rates in the Visayas and Mindanao regions.

Meanwhile, the median self-rated poverty threshold or the lowest monthly home expense budget needed by the poorer half of poor households not to consider themselves as such, remained at PhP20,000 in Metro Manila and P10,000 in Balance Luzon, in the Visayas and in Mindanao, Manila Times reported.

22 local terrorists dead in series of clashes

with troops in Lanao del Sur, says military

The military says 22 members of the local terrorist group have been killed since a series of clashes with government troops recently in the predominantly Muslim province in southern Philippines since May 26, 2015.

According to a military press statement on Saturday, "Since May 26, 2016, intense military operations are being conducted against the local terrorist group in Butig, Lanao del Sur responsible for the beheading of two civilians in the area."

Maj Filemon Tan Jr., spokesman of WesMincom, said the operations resulted in a series of clashes, killing 22 local terrorists (under the Maute group), the death also of two soldiers and wounding of nine other government troopers from the 5th Mechanized Battalion, 51st Infantry Battalion and Philippine Air Force.

Tan said government forces were still pursuing the armed group in the area.

The military blamed the Maute group as behind a series of kidnappings in Lanao province in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and was also said to be responsible for the beheading of two sawmill workers in Butig last month.

Just like the Abu Sayyaf militant group in Basilan, the Maute group had already pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria or Isis.

An armed conflict broke out between government troops and a group of Moro insurgent reportedly sympathizers of ISIS and Jemaah Islamiyah in Butig town in Lanao del Surn February 20, 2016, where three Philippine Army soldiers were killed in action, 11 wounded, and 20 terrorists killed in the early phase of battle.

The fighting forced about 335 families to flee from their homes to avoid getting caught in the crossfire to Marawi City and 657 families took refuge in Masiu, according to report.

The Butig clashes began when a supposed 'foreign and local terrorist organizatio', led by the Maute brothers, harassed the 51st Infantry Battalion, which had been manning a patrol base in Barangay Bayabao on February 20, 2016.

Armored personnel carriers and troops were sent to Butig, while the military used two 520MG Defender helicopters to track down the armed men and conducted air strikes against them. A lull in the fighting occurred that evening, but resumed at dawn the next.

Military sources said the skirmishes between Army forces and the Maute group turned into a full blown military offensive with troops using artillery, gunships, and armored personnel carriers against the suspected terrorists. MGP News

Comelec proclaims 12 winning senators

5 new faces, 4 'returnees,' 3 incumbents proclaimed senators

Five new faces have earned their seats in Senate in this year's elections, along with four former senators headed for few terms, and three reelectionists.

Topping this year's senatorial race is Senate President Franklin Drilon, vice chairman of the Liberal Party, with 18,607,391 votes.

At a close second with 18,459,222 votes is former TESDA director Joel Villanueva, a first-time senatorial candidate, adopted by the administration party.

Sen. Vicente Sotto III of the Nationalist People's Coalition stands at third place with 17,200,371 votes, followed by two independent candidates, former Sens. Panfilo Lacson (16,926,152 votes) and Richard Gordon (16,719,322 votes).

Rounding up the Top 12 are:
6th: former Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri (Independent) — 16,119,165 votes;
7th: Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao (United Nationalist Alliance) — 16,050,546 votes;
8th: former Sen. Francis Pangilinan (LP) — 15,955,949 votes;
9th: former Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros (Akbayan, adopted by LP) — 15,915,213 votes;
10th: Valenzuela City Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian (NPC) — 14,953,768 votes;
11th: Senate President Pro-tempore Ralph Recto (LP) — 14,271,868 votes; and
12th: former Justice Sec. Leila de Lima (LP) — 14,144,070 votes.

The results are based on a total of 166 certificates of canvass transmitted from all over the country, as well as those manually prepared, including detainee and local absentee voting.

This accounts for a total of 44,979,151 votes, an 81-percent turnout for this elections. Unlike in previous polls, the Commission on Elections en banc, which sat as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC), decided to hold this year's proclamation in one occasion, which comes after nine days of canvassing.

Two of the winning senators were not present during the proclamation: Sotto and Lacson.

It was not immediately clear why the two senators-elect skipped the program organized by the Commission on Elections, sitting as the National Board of Canvassers.

Veteran election lawyer Romulo Macalintal received the certificate of proclamation on behalf of Sotto while former Comelec chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. took the certificate for Lacson.


The proclamation pushed through despite opposition from former MMDA chairperson Francis Tolentino, an independent candidate who finished 13th based on the official count, Tolentino asked the Supreme Court to stop the proclamation of candidates ranking 10th, 11th, and 12th in this race.

Tolentino is in 13th place based on partial-official tally, where he raked in 12,811,098 votes, more than 1.3 million votes behind De Lima.

He said the 10th, 11th and 12th placer in the senatorial race should not yet be proclaimed because an alleged "data manipulation" has compromised the results of the results of the May 9 elections.

Tolentino asked the Supreme Court to direct the Comelec to open the automated election system to forensic audit and investigation to determine the nature, extent, effect, and consequences of the unauthorized manipulation of the system made by Marlon Garcia of Smartmatic, systems provider for the recently concluded polls.

Sought for comment, Bautista said, "Susundin namin ang magiging direktiba [ng Korte Suprema]."

As of this report, the high tribunal has not issued a temporary restraining order to stop Thursday's event.

Comelec proclaims 46 winning party-lists

Mindanao's very own partyl-ist, Anak Mindanao (AMIN), is number 12

Forty-six party-list groups on Thursday, May 19, 2016, made it to the House of Representatives following proclamation rites conducted by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Pasay City.

The party-list groups include topnotcher Ako-Bicol, Gabriela, Buhay, 1-Pacman, ACT Teachers Inc., An Waray, Cibac, Abono, Kabataan and Bayan Muna.

The other top party-list groups that got two seats are: One Patriotic Coalition of Marginalized Nationals (1PACMAN), Act Teachers Party-list (ACT Teachers), Coalition of Associations of Senior Citizens in the Philippines (Senior Citizens), Kabalikat ng Mamamayan (Kabayan), Agri-Agra na Reporma para sa Magsasaka ng Pilipinas Movement (Agri), Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA), Buhay Hayaang Yumabong (Buhay), Abono Party-list (Abono), Anak Mindanao Party-list (AMIN), and Cooperative Natcco Network Party (Coop-Natcco).

The following groups are guaranteed with one seat: Akbayan, Bayan Muna, Agap, An Waray, Cibac, Aambis-Owa, Kalinga, A Teacher Inc., Yacap, Diwa, TUCP, Abang Lingkod, LPGMA, ALONA, 1-Sagip, Butil, Acts-OFW, Anakpawis, Ang Kabuhayan, Angkla, Mata, 1-Care, Anac-IP, ABS, Kabataan, BH, Aasenso, SBP, Magdalo, 1-Ang Edukasyon, Manila Teachers, Kusug Tausug, Aangat Tayo and Agbiag.
Fifty-nine House seats are allocated for party-list groups, comprising 20 percent of the whole membership of the House of Representatives.

Under the formula laid down by the Supreme Court in 2009, groups that garnered at least 2 percent of total votes cast for party-lists are guaranteed one seat.

Party-lists that obtain more than two percent may have additional seats, calculated by multiplying their vote percentage by the total number of available party-list seats (total seats minus the guaranteed seats).

Unfilled seats will then be allocated among the groups that are next in rank.

The so-called "Carpio formula" ensures that the seats are filled up with no group granted more than three seats. A total of 115 party-list organizations took part in the 2016 polls.

On territorial disputes over West Philippine Sea

Duterte tells Obama: Philippines is open to bilateral talks with China

Amid territorial disputes over the West Philippine Sea, the country's president-in -waiting Rodrigo Duterte tells US President Barack Obama he is open to have bilateral talks with China if current efforts to resolve the issue fail to prosper.

In a news conference in the southern city of Davao, Duterte revealed that during his conversation with Obama on Tuesday night he assured the latter that the Philippines will remain an ally of the US and the Western World regarding disputes in the South China Sea and continue with the two countries' mutual interests.

"But I gave him an inkling that, well, I would agree to just go with you," Duterte told reporters in a press conference in the southern city of Davao. "But if it goes on still waters, I said, there's no wind to move the sail, I might opt to go bilateral," Duterte told local reporters.

Duterte also bared that Obama urged him: "You should wait for the result of the arbitration." The Philippines is expecting the ruling on the arbitration case this year.

It was learned from the Manila-based media reports the White House confirmed that Obama personally congratulated Duterte through a phone call.

Citing an official statement from the White House, the Philstar said two leaders affirmed their interest in seeing the relationship continue to grow on the basis of the shared principles.

According to a report of Rappler, Obama highlighted "the enduring values that underpin our thriving alliance with the Philippines and the longstanding ties between our two peoples, including our shared commitments to democracy, human rights, rule of law, and inclusive economic growth."

The Philippines, in its case filed in January 2014, challenged the validity of China's sprawling territorial claims in the resource-rich waters and sought to clarify the territorial entitlements of certain Chinese-occupied features under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas.

Mayor Beng weighing whether or not

to support Duterte's death penalty

Zamboanga City reelected Mayor Beng Climaco-Salazar of the Liberal Party (LP) is weighing whether or not she will support the re-imposition of death penalty in the country being pushed by incoming president Rodrigo Duterte for a wide range of crimes, particularly drugs.

"Although the Catholic church is against the death penalty per se always pro-life, what kind of justice must be given to our people will it be death or life imprisonment?" Climaco told reporters in her first press conference Monday at City Hall since the May 9 polls.

"So we will live it up to our justices to the lawmakers to really see what is a very good, corrective measure for the violators of the law," she said.

Citing Filipino citizens who commit crimes in other countries, the mayor said they are meted with death penalty but those foreigners who violate Philippine laws are just deported back to their countries.

"That is why, this (capital punishment) is not strong deterrent particularly for foreign violators of the law to conduct crimes in the Philippines," she added.

Climaco further said personally she does not think that she would be in a capacity to judge for herself as there is always room for the person for corrective measure.

"In that case again without washing my hands as a local chief executive, we will abide by what the product of the law," she said.

Climaco, meantime, said they will strongly support Duterte's proposals on curfew for minors and liquor ban in public places.

"How it is to be translated in the form of the law that will guide all local chief executives and the local government and we will just await the issuance of the law and I believe once it is enacted or once the executive order from president comes out it will always be in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines without violating the rights of the people, we will just abide," she explained.

The camp of Duterte had earlier said the curfew is principally for minors, unescorted minors, past 10 p.m and is does not include minors with their parents or guardians to make sure that the children are in their homes, sleeping already, preparing for the next day in school.

It also made it clear that the liquor ban in Davao City, which prohibits establishments from selling alcohol after 1 a.m., is only in effect in public places. Aside from the curfew and liquor ban, Duterte also imposed a karaoke ban and a no-smoking policy in public areas in Davao city.

Admin gubernatorial bets dominate in Philippine Muslim south elections
Hataman, Lucman proclaimed winners in ARMM

Administration gubernatorial candidates, including the incumbents, have dominated the elections in the predominantly Muslim region in the southern Philippines.

Led by Liberal Party (LP) incumbent Governor Mujiv Hataman and his running-mate Vice Governor Alrashid Lucman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, the administration bets remain on their posts after they were proclaimed winners by the Regional Board of Canvassers on Saturday.

The proclamation was held at the Regional Legislative Assembly Session Hall in ARMM Compound, Cotabato City by the Board of Canvassers composed of Regional State Prosecutor Rami Guiling, Regional Election Director Atty. Mike Abas and DepEd-ARMM Secretary Dr. John Magno.

Abbas told reporters in Cotabato City that ARMM Regional Board of Canvassers granted Hataman's lawyers’ request to proclaim the winners considering the high margin of votes they got on last May 9's (Monday) elections.

Hataman had three rivals -- Sulu's political kingpin vice governor Sakur Tan, independent candidate Faisal Mangondato, and another independent candidate Kharis Pamaloy while Lucman had three opponents,
independent candidates Binladen Sharief, Haron Bandila, and Mosib Salipada.

"The special elections held in Sulu, Maguindanao and Lanao Del Sur will no longer affect the votes of the winning candidates in regional level," Abbas told reporters in Cotabato city.

Based on partial unofficial results by Commission on Elections (Comelec)--GMA Mirror Server for Regional Governor ARMM, as of 12:36 p.m. Saturday, Hataman already has 725,146 votes against Tan's 298,408 votes, followed by Mangondato with 23,722 votes, and Pamaloy with only 3,894 votes.

Meanwhile, Lucman garnered a total of 593,213 votes compared to his rivals: Sharif - 158,937; Bandila - 110,923; and Salipada with16,300 votes.

The administration's LP provincial gubernatorial candidates Esmael Mangudadatu (Maguindanao), Abdusakur Tan II (Sulu), Bombit Adiong (Lanao del Sur), Jim Salliman-Hataman (Basilan), except Tawi-Tawi, have emerged
victorious over their rivals mostly opposition and independent candidates. The gubernatorial race in Tawi-Tawi was won by an opposition candidate, Rash Matba, over administration bet's incumbent governor Nurbert Sahali.

The ARMM, which is home to at least 2,979,814 Muslims, or 58% of the country's Muslim population, is composed of the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi, excluding Isabela City in Basilan and Cotabato City in Maguindanao. It has 1,863,230 registered voters, but only about 60 percent of them cast vote during elections due to security and geographical constraints.

The ARMM elections were synchronized with the general elections after President Aquino signed into law Republic Act No. 10153 on June 30, 2011.

In March 2014, the MILF signed a peace deal with the government that brought to a close 17 years of negotiations and ended a decades-old armed conflict in the country’s south.

A proposed autonomy law -- the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) -- that would have sealed the deal, however, was stalled earlier this year as Congress adjourned for campaigning for the May 9 election.

The law would have created a new region to replace the existing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and bring much needed wealth to a region that is rich in resources but among the country’s most underdeveloped.

After his proclamation Saturday, Hataman posted a message on his Facebook page, addressed to the Bangsamoro people, calling on them to value reform and good governance to work together to change the way they perceive government, and to further empower government institutions.

Hataman wrote they value transparency and accountability, working together to bring government closer and answerable to the people it serves.

"We value peace and justice, and together we moved towards a future where our children and their children can live without fearing for their lives. Together, we moved forward with much respect for the past and even more hope for the future. Our process of healing continues, as we try to erase the lines that were drawn and have divided us
throughout the elections. We need to unite, once again, because it was together that we achieved much in building a stronger autonomous region.

Now we face greater challenges--to further decrease poverty, increase opportunities for our people, and continue on the path of peace. As we welcome a new set of public servants who will lead our nation, it is important to remember what victory truly means, one that goes beyond the elections. Victory means having a true democracy that works for the people, that allows us to claim our rights as citizens, and one that recognizes what it means for us to be Bangsamoro.

Today, we must remember that a victory is not just cause for celebration; it is a challenge to respond to the needs of the people. Winning the elections is not so much a victory for the candidates who garnered the most number of votes, but should be above all else, a win for the people who believe in the power of collective action and in
the value of a true democracy where the will of the people trumps the ambition of a few.

Today we claim a greater victory, one that will heal through acknowledgment of the past, unite through mutual respect and understanding, and look to a future where no Bangsamoro will be left behind. By the grace and guidance of Allah, may we, in the days to come, continue to claim victory together," Hataman concluded.

Hataman, a former Anak Minandao party-list representative for three terms, was named officer-in-charge of ARMM by President Benigno Aquino III in 2011. He ran in the May 12, 2013 general election and won a landslide victory.

The Hataman clan constitutes a powerful political bloc in Basilan, a Yakan predominantly island province in Mindanao.

Hataman said greater challenges they would face is “to further decrease poverty, increase opportunities for our people, and continue on the path of peace.”

Earlier, the country's one time largest Moro revolutionary organization congratulated President-elect Rodrigo Duterte for his “historic victory” during the May 9 Presidential election and vowed to “partner with you and your administration.”

In a report by Minda News on Sunday, Moro Islamic Liberation Front chair Al Haj Murad Ebrahim sent letter to Duterte, saying they remain “highly optimistic and confident that your victory would carry with it our hopes and aspirations for peace and justice in Mindanao.”

Duterte visited the MILF in their Camp Darapanan in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao noon of February 27. In his rally in Cotabato City that afternoon, Duterte declared that if he wins, “one foot of the Moro is already in Malacanang.

The letter noted that Duterte’s “defense of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) before and during the election campaign has in fact infused these optimism and confidence among our people, which should explain
why they overwhelmingly supported your candidacy.”

Duterte got more votes in the ARMM than the votes for reelectionist ARMM Governor Hataman of the Liberal Party.

Murad said any initiative by Duterte “that would rectify the historical injustices committed on us and institute an enduring peace and development in our territories would be fully supported by the MILF and the Bangsamoro people.”

He said Duterte’s message of justice, freedom, equality and social justice “resonates with our aspiration for genuine change.”

The Philippine government (GPH) and the MILF signed the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB) on October 15, 2012 and subsequently the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) on March 27, 2014.
The agreements stipulate that as a matter of fundamental principle, “the status quo is unacceptable” to both parties.

“Your platform for system change precisely captures this principle,” Murad said adding that it is “in our best interest that your advocacy for federalism entrenches our aspiration for genuine self-rule in our homeland through the implementation of the CAB to put an end to the debilitating conflict that breeds anarchy and stimulates the rise of
extremism.”

“Hopefully, through your efforts this can be realized by both Moros and Filipinos so that we can achieve unity and reconciliation as two nations or as component multi-nations enjoying parity of esteem and internal self-determination, and united together in a federalized association for the betterment of the Philippine State,” Murad said..

Murad assured Duterte that “we will partner with you and your administration.”

The peace process with the MILF is on the implementation phase which includes the passage of the BBL.

Under the FAB and CAB, the passage of the BBL will pave the way for the establishment of the Bangsamoro, the new autonomous political entity that would replace the ARMM. The ARMM is deemed abolished once
the BBL is ratified.

Congress under the Aquino administration adjourned on February 3 without passing the law. Without the law, the ARMM continued and elected its new set of officials on May 9.

Under the Duterte administration, it is expected that the BBL is passed by December 2017 as the plebiscite to ratify the BBL requires six months preparation, and the transition period from the ARMM to the Bangsamoro requires at least a year.

If the BBL is passed by then, the transition period can begin by June 30, 2018, election of the first set of officials of the Bangsamoro can be held in May 2019 and the inauguration of the Bangsamoro can be held on June 30, 2019.

If no BBL is passed, the ARMM election in May 2019 will proceed as scheduled.

Duterte told MILF that he would convene a Constitutional Commission to amend the 1987 Constitution to change the system of government into federalism but “if it takes time, and if only to defuse tension, in my government I will convince Congress to pass the BBL then make it as a template for federal states.”

Peter Laviña, Duterte’s spokesperson early this week said the incoming President would propose to Congress the calling of a Constitutional Convention to amend the 1987 Constitution to pave the way for the shift to federalism.

At the Cotabato City plaza in the afternoon of February 27, Duterte stressed the need to correct the historical injustices committed against the Moro people and vowed that under his administration, “we will try to go federalism. The Bangsamoro on the map now, let’s not touch that anymore. Let’s make it an example for the rest to copy. I will immediately ask Congress to pass the BBL)."

He said he will also tell Nur Misuari“kopyahin na lang natin sila para sa Mindanao at buong Pilipinas”(let’s copy that in Mindanao and in the rest of the Philippines”).

Misuari, whom Duterte considers a friend, is founding chair of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) with whom government signed a Final Peace Agreement in 1996 and whose implementation has yet to be fully completed. 

Mindanao labor group supports Grace Poe 

Presidential candidate Senator Grace Poe on Tuesday got the endorsement of the Philippine Integrated Industrial Labor Union (PIILU), an affiliate of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).

In a manifesto, Jose Suan, national president of PIILU and vice president for TUCP, said their group, representing 30,000 members in the Zamboanga Peninsula Region, have overwhelmingly decided and agreed to support the candidacy of Poe.

Suan, who is also director of the Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority (Zamboecozone), representing the Labor Sector, said their group is also backing the re-election bid of Mayor Ma. Isabelle "Beng" Climaco Salazar.

"As united voice of the labor sector in Mindanao, we hereby declare our support to their candidacy," he added. "Because in our views they truly represent the government that cares and that they have crystal clear vision for the country."

With pride and dignity, according to Suan, they proclaim their unwavering support for Senator Grace Poe and Mayor Beng Climaco as they embark on an arduous journey which at the end, "we know this country and this city will be a prosperous and progressive society."

During the Labor Day celebration last May 1 held at the Zamboanga City Economic Zone in Ayala in the city's west coast, Suan together with government official led by Mayor Climaco and private sector leaders signed a Social Accord for Industrial Peace, Harmony and Stability.