Photo by Comenei Ali/BIO
COTABATO CITY—Two renowned women lawmakers of the interim Parliament of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) have travelled to Metro Manila and addressed delegates from various parts of the country to a two-day summit on democratic or electoral concerns.
Lawyers Sha Elijah Dumama-Alba and Raisa Jajurie, both members of the Bansgamoro Transition Authority (BTA), the interim Parliament of the BARMM, served as resource speakers in separate segments the two-day democracy summit organized by the Political Participation for Greater Electoral Integrity (PARTICIPATE) on May 11-12, 2023 in Manila.
Members of Parliament (MPs) Dumama-Alba and Jajurie, concurrent BARMM Attorney General and Social Services Minister, respectively, briefed the summit participants as well as organizers on the salient points in the history and legal grounds for the establishment of the new regional autonomy, its bureaucracy, and recent developments in the region, including the passage of the Bangsamoro Electoral Code (BEC) this year.
The lectures of the two lady BARMM lawmakers reportedly drew apparent interest from the summit participants, one of whom asked about the adaptability of the salient provisions of the BEC to the national electoral system.
Dumama-Alba in response said that most of the comments and suggestions they received from the public and other sectors have been forwarded to the Commission on Election for their disposition.
She admitted that the regional parliament has its own limitations.
“We recognized that there could be a lot of possible reforms that could have been accommodated in the Bangsamoro Electoral Code but medyo na-bind kami nung limitations,” the lady lawyer said.
“Because of the restrictions, we can only legislate on the particular substance of the code, and those that would require national legislation, we left to the COMELEC for action,” she added.
While the BEC has a lot of provisions that may sound unfamiliar in a democratic form of government, Dumama-Alba said that she is personally excited about the BEC, citing innovative provisions such as the women’s agenda, anti-political dynasty—which she described as party system oriented – something new in the national scene.
“Marami pong laman ang ating Bangsamoro Electoral Code na pweding tingnan or gayahin ng ating national government,” said Dumama-Alba.
Meanwhile, Jajurie, who explained the history of the Bangsamoro and the recent development, underscored that the current leadership of the Government of the Day is driven to sustain the gains of the peace covenant.
Jajurie, for her part, lectured on how the BARMM’s government of the day ensures to sustain its gains, pointing out that institutionalizing programs and establishing a stronger democratic play is a vital step for ideal electoral system in the regional autonomy.
“Institutionalizing the program would be very important kaya po yung ilang mga programa that needs to be legislated are of the legislative agenda up to 2025,” she explained.
The summit organizers acknowledged in a briefer on the summit that the developments in the ongoing transition should be a matter of national concern and not only of those residing in BARMM.
The event organizing group is composed of the consortium of Ateneo School of Government (ASOG), La Salle Institute of Governance (LSIG), National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL), Caucus of Development Non-government Organization Networks (CODE-NGO), and Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS). Abdullah Matucan/BIO)
