MANILA, Philippines - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Tuesday endorsed the postponement of elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) scheduled next month to give way for the resumption of peace talks.
"After a consultation with stakeholders, including ARMM officials, they [Cabinet] have jointly arrived at a consensus that they will seek a postponement of the forthcoming Aug. 11 ARMM elections. The [postponement will] give some space for the peace process to succeed since we have reached that strategic threshold of coming out with a settlement on the ancestral domain issue," said Press Secretary Jesus G. Dureza in a telephone conference.
Mr. Dureza, former presidential adviser on the peace process, said a bill seeking the polls deferment would be filed by Sultan Kudarat Rep. Pax S. Mangudadatu, Sulu Rep. Yusoph Jikiri and Tawi-Tawi Rep. Nur Jaafar. Senator Juan Miguel F. Zubiri will file the counterpart bill in the Senate.
"We leave it to the good judgment of Congress the final decision as to whether or not a postponement can be approved. This [bill] will be filed and will be tackled hopefully during the [second regular session], after the State of the Nation Address of the President," he said.
The President will deliver the address on July 28. The law provides that the ARMM local polls will be held on the second Monday of August.
Earlier, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Hermogenes C. Esperon, Jr. announced that the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have reached a compromise on the ancestral domain, the sticky issue that had stalled the peace process for years.
Officials said the consensus would pave way for the resumption of formal peace talks.
The MILF last week called on the government panel in the peace talks to postpone the ARMM elections as this will have an effect in the truce talks.
MILF peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said holding an election will defer the transition period of the soon to be created Bangsamoro Juridical Entity as elected officials will have to finish their three-year term.
The political subdivision will be formed after the government and the Moro group sign a final agreement that will lead to formal peace talks.
Mr. Dureza said Congress would try its best to fast track the passage of the poll postponement bill. "This will be an urgent bill. It will take that kind of urgency since Aug. 11 is coming around the corner."
With Mrs. Arroyos endorsement, the administration coalition decided to defer the proclamation of ARMM candidates that was supposed to be held last week.
The MILF has been waging insurgency campaigns since 1978 and demanded that the government acknowledge their ancestral domain. They refused to acknowledge the Constitution in determining their territory.
In 2003, the government and the Moro group agreed to enter into peace negotiations, but the talks failed in 2006 after the two parties did not agree on the boundaries of the Bangsamoro (Muslim nation) homeland.
Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Tuesday successfully conducted the testing of electronic equipment for the automated ARMM polls.
In a press conference, Comelec Chairman Jose Armando R. Melo said they were "very satisfied" with the results of the mock elections.
"Automated counting was very accurate [and] there was no untoward incident. The machine counts were matched by the hand count... We hope that we will have the same kind of peaceful election when actual voting takes place."
The mock elections were conducted in the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi and the district of Shariff Kabunsuan using the optical media reader (OMR) platform where traditional ballots are shaded and the votes are counted through high-speed scanners. United States-based Avante International Technology, Inc. provided the equipment.
The Supreme Court last week voided the creation of Shariff Kabunsuan, which was carved out of Maguindanao through Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act 201 passed by the ARMM regional assembly. It noted Congress has the sole jurisdiction to create a province.
Comelec Spokesman Arthur James B. Jimenez said in an interview that they would still implement OMR in Shariff Kabunsuan.
Mr. Melo said they excluded Maguindanao from the exercise due to tight security during the visit of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the area.
He said mock elections in Maguindanao, which will use direct recording electronic (DRE) machines where voting is conducted through touch pad, will take place tomorrow.
Smartmatic International with Strategic Alliance Holdings, Inc. will use the DRE technology.
Mr. Melo said OMR and DRE would deter poll fraud. Alexis Douglas B. Romero and Bernard U. Allauigan, BusinessWorld