Political aspirants in Pahamuddin town, part of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s (BARMM) Special Geographic Area (SGA), committed to peaceful and credible midterm elections during a candidates’ forum on Wednesday.
The event, organized by the Army’s 6th Infantry Division (6ID), included a unity walk, a peace covenant signing, and a pledge of commitment. It was held at the Datu Daud Rahman High School gymnasium in the town’s Barangay Libungan Torreta.
Maj. Gen. Donald Gumiran, 6ID commander, said the forum brought together mayoral, vice-mayoral, and town council candidates.
“This initiative aims to foster a peaceful political exercise and ensure the integrity of the electoral process,” Gumiran said in a statement Thursday.
Mayoral candidates Yasser Ebrahim and Nimo Sinarimbo, along with vice mayoral aspirants Ibrahim Rahman and Esmael Talusan, vowed to avoid violence during the campaign, on election day, and after the results are announced.
“We are ready to accept whatever the results. We are all relatives by blood and affinity,” the mayoral candidates said in a joint radio interview Thursday.
Pahamuddin is one of eight newly established municipalities in the SGA-BARMM, carved out of North Cotabato province.
Gumiran said 6ID units will continue engaging local candidates to promote peaceful and credible elections.
The Commission on Elections-BARMM has identified over 100 municipalities as areas of concern for the May 12 polls, with 32 classified as “hotspots” due to intense political rivalries. (PNA)
