Thursday, June 23, 2022
Why there will be a Maguindanao plebiscite on September 17
Senator Francis Tolentino, who sponsored the measure in the upper chamber, says the split would speed up the development of smaller Maguindanao provinces
MANILA, Philippines – The people of Maguindanao will decide on September 17, 2022, whether they want to keep their province as one, or divide it into two.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc on Wednesday, June 22, approved the date for the plebiscite to ratify the law dividing the province into Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur.
Why will there be a vote?
In May 2021, President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law a bill that divides Maguindanao into two provinces.
The law said a plebiscite to ratify it must be conducted by the Comelec within 90 days from when the measure would take effect, which would be around September that year.
But in August, the Comelec postponed the conduct of the plebiscite until after the 2022 elections due to preparations for the upcoming national polls.
The election body noted in Comelec Resolution No. 10716 that the Supreme Court, in the past, had allowed it to “defer the conduct of all plebiscites so as to enable it to focus all its attention and concentrate all its manpower and other resources on its preparation for the [2019] elections.”
Why is there a push for a Maguindanao split?
Senator Francis Tolentino, sponsor of the measure in the upper chamber, had said the split would speed up the political, social, and economic development of the smaller Maguindanao provinces, and make government services more accessible to their constituents.
“The size of the province remains to be a challenge for the provincial government to provide basic services like public health care, education, and transportation to the most remote villages,” March 9, 2021, Senate press release read.
“On a broader perspective, the creation of more public offices as a consequence of the division will further expand the democratic space for qualified and dedicated public servants to participate in the governance of the provinces,” the same release added.
Tolentino sponsored the House version of the bill, whose authors included Maguindanao 1st District Respresentative Datu Roonie Sinsuat Sr., and 2nd District Representative Esmael Mangudadatu.
Maguindanao, with a landmass of over 4,800 square kilometers, is the 20th most populous province in the Philippines with 1.6 million inhabitants, based on the 2020 census.
If Maguindanaoans vote in favor of the split, Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur will each have 12 municipalities. The capital towns will be Datu Odin Sinsuat and Buluan, respectively.
The division of Maguindanao has been a long journey, dating back to as early as 2006 when the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao formed the province of Shariff Kabunsuan from the 10 municipalities in Maguindanao.
While the referendum at the time resulted in a landslide victory in favor of the split, the new province was dissolved only two years later after the Supreme Court ruled its creation was unconstitutional.
https://www.rappler.com/nation/why-there-will-maguindanao-plebiscite-september-17-2022/
Plebiscite for Maguindanao split into 2 provinces set Sept. 17
A PLEBISCITE for the division of Maguindanao into two provinces is set on Sept. 17, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) announced on Thursday.
The Comelec full court decided on the schedule during their regular session on Wednesday, acting Comelec spokesperson John Rex C. Laudiangco told reporters in a Viber message.
In May last year, President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed into law a measure dividing Maguindanao, a province in southern Philippines under the Bangsamoro region, into Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur.
The Maguindanao provincial government earlier allocated P120 million for the plebiscite, wherein residents will decide whether or not to approve the split.
A similar plebiscite was held in Palawan in March 2021, wherein majority voted not to divide the province into three.
Last year, the election body had postponed several plebiscites that were supposed to be conducted before the May 9 national and local elections, citing time constraints for the preparations.
The Supreme Court, in a 2019 decision, upheld the Comelec’s power to “defer the conduct of all plebiscite so as to enable it to focus all its attention and concentrate all its manpower and other resources on this preparation for the said elections,” according to a Comelec resolution dated Aug. 18, 2021.
Meanwhile, Mr. Laudiangco also announced the approval of the resumption of the voter’s registration period from July 4 to 23 ahead of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections in December. — John Victor D. Ordoñez
Plebiscite on dividing Maguindanao set in September
RG Cruz, ABS-CBN News
A plebiscite for the ratification of the division of Maguindanao into 2 provinces will be held on Sept. 17, 2022, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) announced on Thursday.
The Commission en banc set the date for the plebiscite during a regular session, said acting Comelec spokesperson Joh Rex Laudiangco.
President Rodrigo Duterte last year approved Republic Act 11550 which divided the southern province into Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur.
The 2 provinces will be created upon approval by the majority of residents in a plebiscite, the charter reads.
Maguindanao's land size has posed challenges to the delivery of basic services to its about 1.7 million residents, the sponsor of the law, Sen. Francis Tolentino, earlier said.
The creation of the 2 new Maguindanao provinces will make government services more accessible, he said.
Duterte, the first president from Mindanao, promised to bring progress to the countryside.
Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Melvin Matibag said he hoped that the incoming administration would expand "gains" in the Bangsamoro region. He said some 19,000 former rebels have been "decommissioned", while P2.6 billion was allotted to "socioeconomic" projects.
https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/23/22/plebiscite-on-maguindanao-split-set-on-sept-17
Plebiscite on dividing Maguindanao into 2 provinces set for September 17
By HANA BORDEY, GMA News
A plebiscite to decide whether to ratify the law splitting Maguindanao into two provinces has been scheduled by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for September 17.
This was announced by acting Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco on Thursday.
Under Republic Act 11550, or the law dividing the province of Maguindanao into Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur, the two provinces will be created upon approval by the majority of the votes cast by the voters of the affected areas in a plebiscite to be conducted and supervised by the Comelec within 90 days from the date of the effectivity of the law.
President Rodrigo Duterte signed the law on May 27, 2021.
Under the law, Maguindanao del Norte will be composed of the municipalities of Barira, Buldon, Datu Blah Sinsuat, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Kabuntalan, Matanog, Northern Kabuntalan, Parang, North Upi, Sultan Kudarat, Sultan Mastura, and Talitay. Its seat of government will be Datu Odin Sinsuat.
Maguindanao del Sur will be composed of Ampatuan, Buluan, Datu Abdulla Sangki, Datu Anggal Midtimbang, Datu Hoffer Ampatuan, Datu Montawal, Datu Paglas, Datu Piang, Datu Salibo, Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Datu Unsay, Gen. Salipada K. Pendatun, Guindulungan, Mamasapano, Mangudadatu, Pagalungan, Paglat, Pandag, Rajah Buayan, Sharif Aguak, Sharif Saydona Mustafa, Sultan sa Barongis, Talayan, and South Upi. Its seat of government will be Buluan.
Meanwhile, the Comelec granted honoraria to 20 personnel of the Department of Information and Communications Technology who provided technical support during the May 9 national and local polls.
Further, the poll body approved the posting and publication of Forms "1" and "A" of the Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) of national candidates, party-list groups, and political parties on the Comelec website, subject to full compliance with data privacy laws, rules, and regulations. —VBL, GMA News
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