COTABATO CITY — Officials and members of the Peace, Public Order, Safety and Security Committee (PPOSSCom), a sectoral committee of the Bangsamoro Economic and Development Council (BEDC), convened on Tuesday, May 31 for its second regular meeting to discuss the updates on peace and security situation in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Said meeting was presided by Atty. Al-Rashid L. Balt, Director General of the Ministry of Public Order and Safety (MPOS) together with Director Kadil A. Sulaik, Jr., Director of the Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authorityโs (BPDA) Research and Development and Special Projects Bureau (RDSPB). DG Balt has represented committee chairperson and MPOS Minister Hussein Muลoz, while Dir. Sulaik has represented BPDA Director General Engr. Mohajirin T. Ali, committee co-chairperson and head of the technical secretariat.
The meeting highlights the oath-taking of the National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM-BARMM) and Philippine Coast Guard (PCG-BARMM) as additional members of the PPOSSCom.
Following their oath, NAPOLCOM-BARMM Asst. Regional Director Atty. Esmael A. Panda and PCG-BARMM District Chief of Staff Commander Carlos M. dela Rosa, Jr. have discussed the duties and functions of their offices to the officials and members of the said committee.
In line with the recently concluded national and local elections, Abdul Majid Nagamura of Ministry of Public Order and Safety said that there are reported shooting incidents, explosions, and commotions due to misunderstanding, disagreement, intentional delay of releasing election paraphernalia, disorderly precinct lines, slow voting process, arrival of unidentified people, and cheating during the election.
Further, Police Lieutenant Colonel Ganaban C. Ali of Police Regional Office (PRO BAR) also presented updates on peace and order situation. He stressed that peace and order situation in the region is still manageable despite the presence of different risk factors that posed challenges to the security sectors.
During a presentation, Anne Joy Sanchez of underscored that the Bangsamoro Government thru BARMM-READi has distributed relief and humanitarian assistance to at least 374,343 families on January 1 to December 31, 2021 and around 282,827 families on January 01 to May 30, 2022.
She also emphasized the initiatives of Bangsamoro Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (BDRRMC) on Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation (DRR-CCA) in the region, specifically during the widespread flooding caused by Typhoon Odette on December 2021 and Tropical Depression Agaton on April 2022.
A summary of monitored disasters and incidents in 2021 was also reported to the committee. This includes reports on fire, rido, harassment, armed conflict, military operation, flooding, strong winds/heavy rainfall, and bombing explosion.
Mauricio Civiles presented via Zoom the functions and duties of the MILGโs Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM). He said that the said division was able to map out possible programs, projects and activities in consonant with the nationally approved National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council Plan 2022-2030.
Moreover, Janaima Ebrahim and Norcayla Mamalac of the BPDA have reported the updates on the formulation of the 2nd Bangsamoro Development Plan (BDP) 2023-2028 and 1st Bangsamoro Ecological Profile (BEP), emphasizing the role of peace, public order, safety and security sector in crafting the 2nd BDP and 1st BEP of the BARMM.
Datu Raid Salik, Planning Officer of the Bangsamoro Youth Commission, presented the updates on the Regional Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security, highlighting the significant role of the Bangsamoro youth in maintaining and promoting peace and security in the region.
Nor-amin C. Moraki, Local Government Officer of the Ministry of Interior and Local Government (MILG), discussed the National Action Plan on Preventing/Countering Violent Extremism (NAP PCVE) which is the comprehensive, and harmonized national strategy of the government to prevent and counter violent extremism.
He also mentioned some of the regionโs initiative on the said plan such as Bangsamoro Task Force on Ending Local Armed Conflict (BTF-ELAC), Peace and Security Summit, and Project TUGON. Meanwhile, the meeting served as an avenue for possible collaboration among the members of the said committee and its guest government agencies which include Bangsamoro Maritime Industry Authority (BMARINA), BARMM-READi, and Bureau of Immigration (BOI) Cotabato District Office to further strengthen the gains of peace and order in the Bangsamoro region. (BPDA-BARMM)