SC on SuLU exclusion from BARMM: Final and executory

MANILA, Philippines — The exclusion of Sulu from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is final and immediately executory, the Supreme Court (SC) said yesterday as it rejected motions to overturn its ruling.

SC spokesperson Camille Sue Mae Ting said the high tribunal denied the motions for reconsideration filed by the Bangsamoro government, Office of the Solicitor General and other parties seeking Sulu’s inclusion in the BARMM.

 “The decision is final and immediately executory. No further pleadings will be entertained,” Ting said.

 In a ruling issued on Sept. 9, the SC upheld the constitutionality of the Bangsamoro Organic Law but declared Sulu not part of the Bangsamoro region.

The Bangsamoro Attorney General’s Office filed two motions in October, asking the high court to reconsider the ruling.

The Senate and the House of Representatives cited the exclusion of Sulu in filing separate measures to defer the first BARMM parliamentary elections.

The Bangsamoro law, which was enacted in July 2018, established the BARMM as a political entity and its corresponding basic governmental structure.

A plebiscite was conducted in January 2019 covering the then Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao as well as Isabela in Basilan and Cotabato City.

 Another plebiscite was conducted in February 2019 in Lanao del Norte, municipalities in North Cotabato and other areas that petitioned for inclusion in the BARMM.

A majority of the areas ratified the law except Sulu. 

Despite the results of the plebiscites, Sulu was included in the BARMM, prompting the provincial government to file a petition before the high tribunal.

‘Election exec’s slay poll-related’

Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has condemned the killing of an election officer in Lanao del Norte, saying the incident was poll-related.

The Comelec said it is working closely with law enforcement agencies to identify and arrest suspects.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia said that although investigation is ongoing, the poll body has considered the killing of Mark Orlando Vallecer II, election officer of Nanungan town, as election-related.

“If the victim, either wounded or killed, is an employee or official of the Comelec, it is always election-related, even as they say the motive was personal,” Garcia said.  

He said probers should determine the connection between the nature of the work of the victim and the killing. 

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said Vallecer was traveling in Salvador town when he was shot dead by motorcycle-riding men.

The NBI gave assurance that measures are being undertaken to speed up the investigation and prevent similar incidents from happening. — Mayen Jaymalin, John Unson