BARMM leaders firm up coalition to rule region

DAVAO CITY, Philippines — The incoming leadership of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) has vowed to mobilize the support of “all political actors that have significant influence” in a bid to build a strong foundation for the regional government.

On Wednesday, BARMM interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua, who heads the Bangsamoro Federalist Party (BFP), announced the firming up of a coalition of regional political parties and individuals that has now emerged as the ruling coalition in the incoming regular parliament, which is set to convene on Oct. 30.

So far, 46 of the 80 elected members of parliament (MPs) have joined the BFP-led coalition, Macacua said.

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“This is not a claim. This is a fact. Forty-six elected MPs led by the BFP have signed the BARMM Coalition Document,” he pointed out.

Macacua said the coalition government “represents various political parties, ethnolinguistic groups and revolutionary organizations who have come together to govern under a shared vision for all Bangsamoro.”

Forty-two of the 46 coalition members gathered here for a four-day strategic planning workshop to define the agenda of the incoming government’s first 100 days in office and in the next five years.

Macacua is widely expected to be elected as the BARMM’s first regular chief minister.

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MP-elect Naguib Sinarimbo told the Inquirer that the formation of the ruling coalition in parliament is just one aspect of the overall coalition-building work being undertaken by the BFP. Another is the holding of consultative discussions with political actors in the course of forming the regional government, as some of them were not able to win seats in the parliament.

“They would definitely be included. We are looking at how they can have substantial participation in the regional government,” Sinarimbo said.

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When asked about the composition of the ruling coalition, Sinarimbo said that apart from the BFP’s 31 MPs, the incoming parliament majority includes MPs from the Lanao del Sur-based Serbisyong Inklusibo-Alyansang Progresibo Party, Pro-Bangsamoro Party, Raayat Democratic Party and sectoral representatives.

Several district MPs belonging to the United Bangsamoro Justice Party and the BARMM Grand Coalition are also included in the count, Sinarimbo added.

“The Bangsamoro Transition Authority opened the door. Some of its gains were real. Some of its failures were real, too. We will look into both, not to assign blame, but to learn. If we cannot be honest about the past, we have no business shaping the future,” Macacua told the gathering of MPs.

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“Come with open hands because we were elected under different banners, different parties, different visions. But the moment we took our oath, we became something more than a party member, we became public servants of the Bangsamoro people,” he added. /cb