Marcos tells troops to ensure peaceful BARMM polls

President Marcos has ordered military troops in Sulu to ensure that the first ever parliamentary elections for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) would be peaceful as he reminded them to remain vigilant despite the reduced threat posed by terrorist groups.

- ALEXIS ROMERO

During his visit to the Army’s 11th Infantry Division in Jolo, Marcos said the BARMM parliamentary polls should not be disrupted by political violence and terrorism.

“We need to have a peaceful election...That is very important because we need to ensure that the members of the parliament are elected the right way,” the President said in Filipino.

“No terrorism, no political violence. We have to minimize all of them,” he added.

The parliamentary elections for BARMM will coincide with the midterm legislative polls on May 12, 2025.

The BARMM was formed through the Bangsamoro Organic Law, an outcome of the 2014 peace agreement signed by the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. It replaced the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao created in 1989. Sulu is one of the provinces under BARMM, along with Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao and Tawi-Tawi.

Marcos said an orderly implementation of the election would lead to smooth governance in the region.

“Let us not sit on our laurels. Let us not become complacent because these are challenges that we will have to manage,” he added.

Not yet over