Fifteen Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) governmental officials and leaders from political parties and groups filed a petition asking the Supreme Court to annul and void several provisions of the Bangsamoro Electoral Code (BEC).
In the 64-page petition, the BARMM leaders argued the BEC, issued by the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) and signed by BARMM Interim Chief Minister Ahod Balawag, was a "grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction" as well as a violation of the Constitution and existing rules.
On March 23, the Department of National Defense (DND) announced that the BTA Parliament had passed the Bangsamoro Autonomy Act No. 35, also known as the Bangsamoro Electoral Code.
The BEC was designed to allow democratic participation in local and regional elections, as well as the formation of political parties in the region with representation from women, youth, indigenous people, settler communities, traditional leaders, and Ulama.
According to the BTA Parliament, the first regular election for the Bangsamoro Government would be held and synchronized with the national elections in 2025, as required in the Bangsamoro Organic Law.
The petitioners also questioned the BEC's provision that facilitates the grant and use of public funds for election campaigns and partisan political activities, which is expressly prohibited by Section 261 of the Omnibus Election Code.
They also challenged Sections 9 and 12 of Article IV of the BEC, claiming that they were "inconsistent with the principles of republicanism enshrined in the Constitution and implemented in the [Bangsamoro Organic Law] insofar as said provisions impose a four percent (4%) threshold before a political party representative may qualify for a seat in Parliament."
The petitioners claimed that such a clause "also creates a barrier that will not only limit the people's choice but will also hamper the development of a free and open party system."
With this, they requested that the Supreme Court grant a temporary restraining order (TRO) to prevent the BTA from enforcing the BEC pending the conclusion of their petition.

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BARMM officials asks SC to nullify some provisions of Bangsamoro Electoral Code