Marcos warns against forces seeking to disrupt Bangsamoro polls in 2025

PHILIPPINE President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. warned the nation on Thursday against forces that seek to thwart democratic processes ahead of the first parliamentary election in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2025.

“I strongly appeal to all concerned to stop this call for a separate Mindanao. This is a grave violation of the Constitution,” Mr. Marcos said as he addressed the 17th Meeting of the National Government-Bangsamoro Government Intergovernmental Relations Body at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

His call comes on the heels of a separatist threat from his predecessor, Rodrigo R. Duterte, who unveiled a plan last month to separate Mindanao from the rest of the nation.

“We must remind ourselves that we are now operating under different rules and that we cannot allow forces outside of the democratic process to deviate our dreams and our aspirations from a democratic process,” the President said.

He said Filipinos should never allow even a single voter to be disenfranchised by violence, intimidation, or bribery.

The Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) passed in March last year an electoral code that paved the way for the creation of political parties in the region with representatives from women, youth, indigenous people, and settler communities.

The first-ever parliament elections in the autonomous region was originally set for May 2022 but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“A stronger BARMM is a stronger Mindanao; a stronger Mindanao means a stronger Philippines, bringing us closer to achieving our agendas,” Mr. Marcos said.

Mr. Duterte, in late January, said local political forces would be regrouping in the Davao region to start a signature campaign for the separation of Mindanao from the Philippines — a move that has been opposed by various government agencies, including the Departments of Justice (DoJ) and of National Defense (DND).

Citing its December 2023 survey, research firm WR Numero said recently that 57% of Filipinos hold either a positive or a very positive view of the creation of the BARMM.

It replaced the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao after peace talks between the National Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which had called for a region with more powers.

Bangsamoro Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim and BTA Deputy Speaker Omar Yasser Sema, a secondgeneration member of the Moro National Liberation Front, have already rejected Mr. Duterte’s separatist call.

Moro rebels have long abandoned calls for secession, they said, citing gains from past peace negotiations.

BARMM is composed of the provinces of Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi.