MANILA (October 4 — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has begun pulling out election paraphernalia from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), after the Supreme Court ordered the postponement of the region’s first parliamentary elections.
Comelec chairperson George Garcia said “reverse logistics” are now underway to retrieve automated counting machines (ACMs), official ballots, indelible ink, batteries, and other supplies.
“They can’t just stay there as all the machines must be reconfigured and tested again,” Garcia said Thursday. He added that the retrieval should be completed by November, with all items stored at the Comelec warehouse in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
The BARMM parliamentary elections were set for Oct. 13, 2025 and would have marked a milestone — the first time residents could directly elect members of the region’s legislature since the Bangsamoro Organic Law created the autonomous government in 2019.
But the Supreme Court’s ruling this week upended that timeline. It struck down as unconstitutional the redistricting laws passed by the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), saying the measures violated provisions of the organic law. The Court directed the BTA to pass a new districting law by Oct. 30, and reset the polls to a date not later than March 31, 2026.
The decision effectively extends the BTA’s hold on power for at least another year.
Frustration and concern
Local groups have expressed mixed reactions. “People have been waiting for years to choose their own representatives. This delay is another blow to the promise of self-rule,” said Amirah Ali, a civil society organizer in Cotabato City.
Election watchdog Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) also urged transparency in the retrieval of materials. “These ballots and machines must be carefully safeguarded. Any lapses now could erode trust in an already delicate process,” LENTE executive director Ona Caritos said.
Meanwhile, some lawmakers defended the High Court’s ruling as necessary. Maguindanao del Norte Rep. Sitti Shahara Mastura said the decision “provides a chance to fix flawed districting that could have undermined fair representation.”
A political flashpoint
The postponement adds another layer of uncertainty in BARMM, where the transitional government has faced both praise for pursuing reforms and criticism for delays in establishing permanent institutions.
For Comelec, the priority remains securing and reconfiguring election materials. “This is a matter of security and accountability. Every piece of election material must be accounted for,” Garcia stressed.
But for many in BARMM, the deeper concern lies beyond logistics. “It’s about whether our voices will ever be heard in the system promised to us,” Ali said.
