Amended Bangsamoro Electoral Code aims for “more inclusive” representation
COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 29 January) — The Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) on Thursday passed on third and final reading Parliamentary Bill 419 which amended the Bangsamoro Electoral Code to allow for a fairer and more inclusive representation in the 80-member Bangsamoro Parliament and ensure community-rooted political parties are not relegated to the sidelines.
Among the significant changes are the lowering of the election threshold from 4% to 2.5% to allow smaller regional parliamentary political parties (RPPPs) to secure seats in the Bangsamoro Parliament.
A party now needs only 2.5 percent of the total valid votes to qualify for one of the 40 seats, down from the previous 4 percent.
PB 419 also cut by half – from 10,000 to 5,000 — the membership requirement for registering a regional parliamentary political party.
The BTA passed PB No. 419 with 32 affirmative votes, six negative votes, and no abstention.
It also passed PB No. 396, which amended the Bangsamoro Electoral Code by removing the NOTA (none of the above) option from the ballot. The bill wsa approved with 40 voting yes, two against and no abstention.
Voters in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao are to elect 80 Members of Parliament, 40 of them political party representatives, 32 single district representatives, and eight sectoral representatives.
“These amendments are safeguards to protect the democracy we are building for tomorrow,” the bill’s authors said in their explanatory note. The 4% threshold, they said, risks “relegating community-rooted parties to the sidelines.”
The bill as filed, actually lowered from 30% to 20% women representation among the political parties’ 40 nominees – from 12 out of 40 to 8 out of 40 – but during the committee hearings this was brought back to 30%, following protests from women’s organizations and other sectors.
PB 419 provides that all existing political parties, organizations, or coalitions that want to join the first parliamentary elections should register and get new accreditation with COMELEC through the Bangsamoro Registration and Accreditation Committee (BRAC) under the updated rules.
The new law also provides that the Non-Moro Indigenous Peoples (NMIPs) will continue to elect representatives through their sectoral assembly. All other sectoral representatives will be elected through a direct plurality of valid votes.
PB No. 419 revokes and cancels all previously issued certifications for sectoral organizations and sectoral wings of political parties. A new certification process will be required under stricter timelines, including a non-extendible 15-day period for certifying offices to act on applications.
Before PB 396 amended the Bangsamoro Electoral Code, voters had the option to select NOTA on the official ballot. The bill now specifies that official ballots shall contain only the names of candidates.
Deputy Speaker Baintan Adil-Ampatuan, one of the bill’s principal authors, explained that NOTA had to be removed because it will lead to unfilled seats.
“If NOTA wins, who sits in that seat?” Ampatuan said. “You are there to elect a nominee. NOTA is not a candidate; it is a sentiment. There are other venues for expressing sentiment, but not during an election,” she said.
Congress has yet to pass a law setting the date for the 1st Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections. It was supposed to be held in May 2022, but was reset to May 2025, and again reset to October 2025 but this did not push through because the Supreme Court declared the two previous districting laws unconstitutional. (Ferdinandh B. Cabrera / Mindanews)
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