BTA sets December target for redistricting law

THE Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Parliament on Monday said it aims to finish the required districting law by December after missing the Nov. 30 deadline for its passage, a prerequisite for holding the first Bangsamoro parliamentary elections.

In a statement, BTA Parliament Floor Leader John Anthony “Jet” L. Lim, said the Parliament is working “with diligence, transparency, and broad public participation” on the districting measure. He said that the Parliament aims to complete and pass the law by December 2025, in line with the Bangsamoro Organic Law.

Alongside its work on the districting law, the Parliament is also deliberating the proposed Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) 2026 budget bill, Mr. Lim added.

The missed deadline comes shortly after Commission on Elections Chairman George Erwin M. Garcia warned on Nov. 25 that it would be “difficult” for the agency to hold the first parliamentary elections in BARMM by March 31, 2026, if a new redistricting law is not enacted by the end of November.

Earlier, the Supreme Court struck down two Bangsamoro Autonomy Acts (Nos. 58 and 77), which were meant to create parliamentary districts, voiding the legal basis for the elections.

To date, six versions of the redistricting bill are being reviewed and consolidated by BTA committees, Mr. Lim said.

Public consultations for the districting law began Nov. 6 in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, and scheduled to continue Dec. 4 in Special Geographic Area, Maguindanao del Sur, and Basilan, and Dec. 7 in Maguindanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, and Cotabato City. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking