Canvassing of votes for additional areas in Bangsamoro region drags on

The tabulation and auditing of the votes cast during the second round of the plebiscite for additional areas to join the Bangsamoro Region has dragged on for three days and counting, due to the involved election paraphernalia being too voluminous.

This developed after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc, sitting as the National Plebiscite Board of Canvassers (NPBOC), moved the resumption of the canvassing of votes from North Cotabato and Lanao del Norte to February 14 at 2 p.m. since the Tabulation and Audit group have yet to finish verifying the plebiscite results.

“The NPBOC will reset our canvassing tomorrow at 2 p.m. The documents are voluminous, so they could not finish it today,” Consuelo Diola of the Comelec Secretariat said.

“They [Tabulation and Audit groups] have been doing their work since the first day until 11 p.m., then yesterday, until 11 p.m. also. Probably they will finish earlier than 11 p.m. [today] but we don’t want to push them,” Diola added.

The Comelec en banc was supposed to resume canvassing at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, and again at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, before Diola made the announcement.

The second round of the plebiscite for additional areas for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region held last February 6 covered barangays in the municipalities of Aleosan, Carmen, Cabacan, Midsayap, Pigkawayan, and Pikit in North Cotabato as well as the municipalities of Baloi, Munai, Nunungan, Pantar, Tagaloan and Tangkal in Lanao del Norte.

Read: Fast facts on the Bangsamoro Organic Law

The inclusion of these areas in the new region would only materialize if the area concerned and their respective mother unit approve of their inclusion, meaning a municipality in Lanao del Norte will join the new region if majority of those in the concerned municipality and the province of Lanao del Norte voted yes in the plebiscite.

The barangays in North Cotabato can only join the new entity if the majority of those in the concerned barangay and the municipality it belongs to voted yes.

The February 6 plebiscite for additional areas pushed through since the "yes" vote for the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) won during the first round of the plebiscite last January 21 with over 1.5 million "yes" votes against around 198,000 "no" votes.

The BOL abolishes the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and replaces it with the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region which would be granted an expanded land and water jurisdiction, fiscal autonomy, and an increased share in national government resources, among others. — BM, GMA News