OPAPRU: Palace won't intervene in choice of BARMM leadership

COTABATO CITY – The national government will not interfere in the selection of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao's (BARMM) new leadership, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) said on Monday, Oct. 19, calling the matter "strictly internal to the Bangsamoro Parliament."

In a statement, Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Secretary Mel Senen S. Sarmiento said OPAPRU "stands firmly behind" the directives of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in upholding the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), which he said is rooted in the Bangsamoro people's right to genuine self-determination and meaningful autonomy.
Sarmiento cited the President's Oct. 14 statement issued after the announcement of a 46-member majority coalition in the Parliament.

"Following the announcement of a 46-member majority coalition, I reiterate the national government's respect for Bangsamoro autonomy and its democratic institutions. We respect Parliament's authority to determine its leadership in accordance with the Bangsamoro Organic Law. We look forward to working with the government formally constituted by Parliament in support of peace, stability, and inclusive development," Marcos said.

Sarmiento said that once the Members of the Parliament have chosen their leaders and constituted the Government of the Day, the President will reach out to all political parties in the region in a call for "unity, statesmanship, and cooperation."

He said that with the Political Track of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) reaching "full maturity," the government's upcoming engagements will place renewed focus on the full implementation of the Normalization Track.

This includes completing the decommissioning of the remaining Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants, accelerating the dismantling of Private Armed Groups (PAGs), and advancing a parallel peace-building and decommissioning agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), he said.

"A united and thriving BARMM is vital not only to the socioeconomic transformation of Mindanao, but to the sustained economic growth of the entire Philippines," Sarmiento said.

He added that the Marcos administration aims to leave "a lasting legacy of peace," with the next administration inheriting a stable BARMM and a peaceful Mindanao.

The 80 newly elected Members of the Parliament are set to take their oath and assume office on Oct. 30, after which they will elect the region's Chief Minister and constitute the Government of the Day.