BARMM to build executive halls, public markets in 5 Maguindanao towns

Officials of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) inked an agreement last Monday with five town mayors in Maguindanao for the construction of executive halls, public markets and legislative buildings.

The mayors of Talayan, Kabuntalan, South Upi, Datu Blah Sinsuat, and Sultan Kudarat signed the memorandum of agreement with the BARMM Ministry of the Interior and Local Government (MILG) in Cotabato City.

Local Government Minister Atty. Naguib Sinarimbo, Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim and Executive Secretary Abdulraof Macacua led the MOA signing.

Ebrahim said the BARMM government will continue developing programs and projects in towns, especially infrastructure.

“Nakaline-up na ang mga programa at proyekto ng iba't-ibang ministries at OCM [Office of the Chief Minister]. Ito ang main reason why we are opting for an extension and we hope this will be materialized in shaa Allah,” Ebrahim said.

Funds for the facilities to be constructed in the five towns will come from the Local Government Facilities Development Program of the OCM in coordination with the MILG.

MILG also signed a similar agreement in December 2020 with the town mayors of Sultan Dumalondong, Butig, Poona Bayabao, and Lumbaca Unayan in Lanao del Sur, and Pandag in Maguindanao for a two-storey building to be constructed in their areas.

SALAM Bangsamoro

The BARMM government also said the MILG and OCM signed an executive order creating the SALAM Bangsamoro project management office which will assist former combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front transition to civilian life.

“The project will initially cover 10,000 combatants who will be provided with cash assistance,” Sinarimbo said.

The former combatants will be given assistance based on their compliance with three requirments: enrollment into peace education, community services rendering, and skills development training, he said.

Meanwhile, the BARMM government also had a MOA signing on Monday with the Cotabato City State Polytechnic College for the implementation of the Chief Minister’s Special Scholarship Program for Indigent Bangsamoro Students. —KG, GMA News