THE Bangsamoro parliament is pushing for the creation of a Bangsamoro Economic and Development Council (BEDC) to focus on socioeconomic development concerns and priorities in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Engineer Baintan Adil-Ampatuan, a member of the Bangsamoro parliament, emphasized the importance of having a BEDC during the plenary session on October 17.
Adil-Ampatuan is the former director of Regional Planning and Development Office of the now-defunct Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
“Bawat proyekto po na gagawin ng gobyerno, ito po ay dadaan sa matinding proseso. At ang dulo po nito ay titingnan ng Commission on Audit (COA) kung naaayon ba sa procurement law, government accounting, and auditing rules and procedures, at iba pang issuances and pag-implement natin ng kahit isang proyekto,” Adil-Ampatuan said.
“To ensure people’s participation and equitable development, the Council shall take into account the development plans of the provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays as approved by their respective local development councils,” she added.
Adil-Ampatuan said the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) “is not only mandated to establish the Bangsamoro Economic and Development Council to serve as planning and policy making body, but it is also empowered to organize the bureaucracy of the Bangsamoro Government during the transition.”
A bill seeking to create the BEDC has been filed before the Bangsamoro parliament and was authored by Minority Floor Leader Laisa Masuhud-Alamia, Amir Mawallil, Rasol Mitmug, Jr., Don Mustapha Loong, Suharto Ambolodto, and Rasul Ismael aside from Adil-Ampatuan. (SunStar Zamboanga)