BARMM SGA barangays clear creation of new municipalities

DAVAO City—the Special Geographic Area (SGA), a Moro enclave formed by the 63 barangays scattered among the six towns of North Cotabato, voted resoundingly for the creation of 8 new municipalities. The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) said the SGA barangays “voted resoundingly YES in another plebiscite here on April 13.” The BARMM said the same scattered barangays opted to wean away from the six towns of North Cotabato through a voter plebiscite in 2019 to officially belong to the BARMM.

The Bangsamoro Information Office said the Commission on Elections (Comelec) reported that the results of the plebiscite showed that 72,358 voted in favor of creating the eight new municipalities, while 273 were against it.

Comelec said the official voter turnout was 81.10 percent out of the 89,594 registered voters.

The information office quoted Member of Parliament Mohammad Kellie Antao, a known staunch advocate for peace and development in the SGA, as saying that “voting was the culmination of the aspirations of the Bangsamoro people in the area for inclusion in the autonomous region.”

Antao voted in the affirmative in his assigned precinct. “The event today is indeed historical as this represents the aspirations of our people.”

The eight new municipalities will be known as Kapalawan, Old Kaabakan, Malidegao, Ligawasan, Tugunan, Nabalawag, Kadayangan, and Pahamuddin. Under these municipalities are the 63 barangays, which once belonged to the North Cotabato towns of Carmen, Kabacan, Pikit, Aleosan, Midsayap, and Pigcawayan.