MARAWI CITY, BARMM. Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has reassigned at least two provincial election supervisors with just over a week to go before the historic parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) on Sept. 14.
The poll body swapped lawyers Renault Macarambon and Mohammad Nabil Mutia, the provincial election supervisors of Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte, respectively.
Macarambon said Comelec Chair George Erwin Garcia directed his transfer to Maguindanao del Norte effective today.
Mutia confirmed on Sunday that he would assume the post of provincial election supervisor in Lanao del Sur, also effective today.
“We have been reassigned in the exigency of the service,” he told the INQUIRER.
READ: First BARMM elections set for Sept. 14 after four postponements
Last Friday, officials of the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities, the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group and the Joint Peace and Security Team—peace mechanisms under the Bangsamoro peace process—signed a pledge of commitment for the conduct of peaceful and credible Bangsamoro parliamentary elections in Lanao del Sur.
Brig. Gen. Jessie Montoya, commander of the Army’s 103rd Infantry “Haribon” Brigade, hosted the signing of the commitment to ensure honest elections in the province.
Red category
The Comelec earlier placed 21 localities in Lanao del Sur under the red category, the highest threat classification in the Bangsamoro region.
A total of 26 areas in BARMM had been placed under the red category, referring to areas with serious threats and a history of election-related violence.
Mutia said a “one entrance, one exit” policy would be strictly implemented at polling places in Lanao del Sur to ensure orderly and clean elections.
Barangay officials in Lanao del Sur would also not be allowed to remain inside voting centers after casting their votes, Macarambon said, adding that the measure was highlighted during a coordination meeting last week with the security sector, teachers and other election stakeholders.
The measure is aimed at preventing barangay officials from interfering with or influencing the elections, Macarambon said.
He reminded election officers to remain impartial and nonpartisan so that voters could freely choose their candidates in the upcoming Bangsamoro elections.
Presidential Peace Adviser Mel Senen Sarmiento said the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front resumed substantive engagements under both the political and normalization tracks of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
He said the normalization track will continue beyond the polls.
“Be assured that this administration will do everything within our mandate to ensure that the elections are safe, peaceful and credible,” Sarmiento said.
Last Sept. 1, President Marcos reaffirmed his support for the upcoming elections. About 2.4 million voters in BARMM will elect members of the Bangsamoro Parliament on Sept. 14.
The Bangsamoro region was established in 2019 and is composed of Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Basilan, and Tawi-Tawi. —WITH REPORTS FROM PNA, AND BONG S. SARMIENTO
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