High turnout seen in BOL plebiscite
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is expecting a high voter turnout and a more peaceful conduct of today’s plebiscite for the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).
Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said today’s plebiscite – in Lanao del Norte and North Cotabato – might not generate the same level of interest than the one conducted on Jan. 21 in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
(ARMM) – Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi – as well as in the cities of Cotabato and Isabela.
“The stakes are a little different, it’s just inclusion, but we are nevertheless hopeful because this is a politically active area, historically and traditionally. We expect that we will have a turnout better than 70 percent,” Jimenez said, adding today’s activity is expected to be “less emotional” and more peaceful.
Despite fears that violence might spill over from other parts of Mindanao, Jimenez said both the Comelec and the Philippine National Police (PNP) are hopeful that today’s plebiscite will be peaceful and successful.
“According to the PNP, there is no increase in the number of hotspots. Clearly they are not expecting any great disruption during the elections. Let’s face it, the Jan. 21 plebiscite was successful and we hope to duplicate that success,” Jimenez said.
PNP chief Director General Oscar Albayalde yesterday visited his men tasked to secure the plebiscite.
Photographs released by the PNP showed Albayalde leading a command conference at the Midsayap municipal hall in North Cotabato.
Albayalde will also visit and supervise security preparations in Lanao del Norte.
Canvassing in Manila
Jimenez said much of the canvassing of the plebiscite results would be conducted in Manila, with the National Plebiscite Board of Canvassers (NPBOC) set to reconvene tomorrow afternoon.
He said certificates of canvass from different municipalities of North Cotabato will be directly transmitted to the NPBOC.
Official results of the plebiscite are expected within four days or by Tuesday at the latest, Jimenez said.
Special monitoring teams have been deployed prior to plebiscite day to help in the voting preparations.
Election paraphernalia will be released at 4 a.m. today. Voting precincts are open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Manual system of voting will be used in the plebiscite.
Jimenez said voters should write “yes” or “no” on the ballots to indicate whether they want to be included or not in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao or BARMM.
A total of 639,361 registered voters are expected to cast their votes.
Support for BOL
The people of Lanao del Norte yesterday affirmed their support for the BOL as they prepared to participate in the plebiscite.
Residents expressed their confirmation through a resounding “yes” during a peace assembly on the BOL held at the municipal gym of Kapatagan town on Monday.
Assistant Secretary Dickson Hermoso of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) said the landmark legislation was part of the Duterte administration’s commitment to attain a lasting peace in Mindanao. Hermoso said with the ratification of the BOL, combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will be decommissioned and development programs and projects will be provided for the new Bangsamoro region.
MILF Bangsamoro Transition Commissioner Abdullah Camlian said the BOL could be the last chance for the Bangsamoro people to achieve their aspirations for a lasting peace.
For his part, Omar Yasser Sema of the Moro National Liberation Front Bangsamoro Transition Commission urged the people to stay vigilant during the plebiscite.
The peace assembly was part of the commitment of the OPAPP with the Comelec to carry out a series of education campaigns in areas covered by the plebiscite.
The campaign aims to help voters make an informed decision during the plebiscite.
Meanwhile, local governments in North Cotabato also expressed their support for the BOL during a forum held in Midsayap on Feb. 2.
The forum was attended by local officials, members of academe and civil society groups.
OPAPP Undersecretary Nabil Tan urged the people to support the inclusion of their towns and cities in the BARMM.
‘Allot enough funds for BOL’
Sen. Paolo Benigno Aquino IV urged his colleagues in the Senate to allot enough funds for the full implementation of the BOL and ensure the fulfillment of its mandate to bring peace and order in Mindanao.
“Our Muslim brothers and sisters have long fought for this so the transition must not be delayed by lack of budget,” Aquino said, referring to the BOL.
He said the ARMM’s proposed budget of P31.1 billion for this year would not be enough as the transition to BARMM needs around P59 billion.
Republic Act 11054 or the BOL mandates that the current appropriation for the ARMM should be transferred to the Bangsamoro Transition Authority.
The Senate version of the 2019 budget has allotted around P30 billion additional budget for the BARMM, which Aquino hopes will hurdle the bicameral conference committee.