Bangsamoro Government Center, Cotabato City
September 15, 2022

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. witnessed the oath of moral governance of the 80 duly appointed and elected officers of the reconstituted Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) 2022-2025 in a historic ceremony at the Shariff Kabunsuan Cultural Complex located within the Bangsamoro Government Center in Cotabato City.

In his message, the President assured the BTA of the government’s unwavering commitment to the peace process and towards the realization of a Bangsamoro government.

“This is why we are steadfast in our commitment to the peace process here in Southern Philippines. So we push for socioeconomic development, interventions to promote peace and development in areas affected by decades of conflict,” President Marcos Jr. said.

Citing the Department of Budget and Management’s (DBM) budget allocation amounting to PhP74.4 billion for the Bangsamoro Region Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, the President urged the BTA duly appointed and elected officers to pass all the crucial legislations on fiscal policy, particularly taxation, and to facilitate the conduct of elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2025. He also encouraged the BTA to pass measures that will secure the welfare of the Moro people particularly in agri-fishery, healthcare, transportation, communication, digital infrastructure and e-governance.

In the same event, BTA Chief Minister Ahod ‘Al Haj Murad’ Ebrahim handed draft copies of the Bangsamoro Electoral Code and Bangsamoro Local Government Code to President Marcos Jr.

The reconstituted BTA is composed of 41 officers from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and 39 from the Government of the Philippines (GPH), consisting of representatives from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), incumbent GPH members, recommendations from local government units (LGUs) and various sectors.

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