COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 06 November) — Bangsamoro Government Interim Chief Minister Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim swore to office Monday morning 592 newly-elected barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials from this city’s 37 villages.
He also led the pledging of the newly elected officials to the “principles of moral governance” pushed by the Bangsamoro government.
“Moral governance is about completely (avoiding) the evils of governance and society, especially graft and corruption and illegal drugs,” Ebrahim said at the event held at the Shariff Kabunsuan Cultural Center here.
He noted that under the brand of moral governance, the Bangsamoro government “promotes peace and security at all times.”
Bangsamoro Interior and Local Government Minister Atty. Naguib Sinarimbo said the new officials would be subjected to local governance training, especially the SK winners.
“Our barangays are important in local governance. This is where people in the grassroots come to seek assistance on concerns of their village,” said Sinarimbo, urging the winners to be hands-on officials.
He added that the newly-elected officials should have clear plans, expressing hopes they will commit to the vision of the Bangsamoro government.
During his welcome address, Cotabato City Mayor Bruce Matabalao said the mass oath-taking of the new barangay and SK officials marks a new chapter for the city.
He reminisced how the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP), the political party of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, defeated the previous administration of then Mayor Cynthia Guiani-Sayadi, who opposed the Bangsamoro Organic Law and campaigned for the exclusion of Cotabato City from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
Matabalao recalled the violent incident in Barangay Rosary Heights-12 days before the BSKE elections, where three people were killed and three others were wounded.
“We cannot turn on blind eye to all the divisions it has caused, the heated arguments among friends, the bitter exchanges in social media and the rifts within communities,” he said.
Stressing that there is no permanent friends or allies in politics, Matabalao said that elections are “a test to the very fabric of society not to allow differences to become divisions.”
Matabalao is hoping that as new leaders, they will bridge the reconciliation efforts with their defeated rivals or their supporters.
Maguindanao del Norte Governor Abdulraof Macacua, also the UBJP secretary general, described the oathtaking ceremony like the “wedding vows of couples.”
He called on the new officials to the always “protect the rights of the public” and to seriously fight illegal drugs.
Macacua said they are hoping that the barangay and SK officials will help them boost the image of this city, the seat of government of the Bangsamoro government.
Of the 37 barangays, only one elected barangay chairman did not attend the oath-taking Monday morning for yet unknown reason.
In the afternoon, the newly-elected officials from the 63 barangays of the Bangsamoro Special Geographic Area also took their oath of office. (Ferdinandh Cabrera / MindaNews)