- 1st BARMM parliamentary polls suffer another setback
THE SUPREME Court has declared the Bangsamoro Autonomy Act (BAA) 77 and BAA 58 unconstitutional, which effectively postponed the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Parliamentary Elections scheduled on Oct. 13.
SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting said on Wednesday that the Bangsamoro Transition Authority must first pass a new law by Oct. 30, 2025.
The SC ruling also ordered the Commission on Elections to proceed with preparations and conduct the elections no later than March 31, 2026.
The BAA 58 created the parliamentary districts in the region. Meanwhile, BAA 77 or the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Redistricting Act of 2025 was passed on Aug. 19 and amended BAA 58, redistributing Sulu’s seven seats. The Supreme Court last year handed a ruling excluding Sulu from BARMM when the province voted against ratifying RA 11054 in 2019.
During the Mindanao Development Forum 2025 in Davao City on Wednesday, Oct. 1, BARMM Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua said that he received the Supreme Court ruling ordering the Bangsamoro Transition Authority to pass a new law on redistricting before Oct. 30, 2025.
This resets the first parliamentary elections 120 days after Oct. 30, 2025.
“That controversial BAA 77 and BAA 58 were scrapped by the Supreme Court and the SC ruled that BTA must have to pass another law before Oct. 30,” Macacua told reporters in a press conference.
Macacua emphasized that their services will continue amid the postponement.
“We are appointed by the President, unless there is an election, after the election, the appointment of the President will be taken over by the elected officials,” Macacua said.
The Oct. 13 BARMM Parliamentary Elections have already been postponed twice in May 2022. With the rescission of BAA 77, voters would elect 80 members of the parliament instead of 73 seats.
