THE Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (MBHTE-Barmm) activated an election task force on Monday, April 22, to ensure a free, orderly, honest, peaceful, and credible elections on May 9.
The creation of the MBHTE-Barmm election task force is in compliance with the Department of Education (DepEd) Memorandum 010, series of 2022.
The memorandum seeks the establishment of the 2022 DepEd Election Task Force and Its Operation in Monitoring Center in the Central, Regional, and School/City Division Offices in Connection with the May 9, 2022 national and local elections.
MBHTE Minister Mohagher Iqbal said the Regional and Division Task Force shall ensure that all MBHTE personnel, teaching and non-teaching, shall be provided with adequate information, technical support, and legal assistance in the course of the performance of their duties as members of the electoral board on May 9 polls.
The Regional and Division Election Task Force is composed of five groups or units, namely: steering group, operations and legal support group, secretariat, call center monitoring data base unit, and logistics and external coordination mobile unit.
Iqbal reminded teachers who will serve in the elections to maintain neutrality and stick to what is being implemented by the law.
"Let us stay neutral, remember that you have a right to choose your candidates, and just stick to the law and principle for us to have a clean, peaceful, and transparent in the near 2022 election," Iqbal said.
The MBHTE legal officials oriented the task force on constitutional provisions, laws, and jurisprudence on Electioneering and Political Partisan Activity; Participation and preparations for the 2022 NLE; and Political Neutrality and Learner's Participation in Political Partisan Activity.
MBHTE legal counsel Hamida Mantikayan said that electoral board members are prohibited to wear any election paraphernalia, give financial contributions for the benefit of a candidate or party, be a delegate to any political convention, and form groups or organizations for the purpose of soliciting votes. (SunStar Zamboanga)