FOLLOWING the conduct of the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections (BPE), the Commission on Elections (Comelec) called on those elected during the September 14 polls to prove their worthiness of the votes of the Bangsamoro voters.
In his post BPE statement, Comelec Chairman George Garcia issued the call while noting that the voter turnout went to as high as 84.43 percent.
"To the newly elected members of the Bangsamoro Parliament: the people have entrusted to you the votes they cast at the cost of blood, time, and faith. May you prove yourselves worthy of this historic opportunity and serve as instruments of the peace, justice, and progress that the Bangsamoro people have long fought for," said Garcia in his post BPE statement.
On the other hand, the National Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) appealed to those who lost in the BPE to respect the results of the elections.
It stressed that engaging in post-election violence will not lead to a change in the BPE results.
"We urge all political parties, candidates, and their supporters to abide by the results, to reject all forms of intimidation, and violence in the post-election period," said Namfrel in a statement.
Meanwhile, the poll watchdog said it is now training its sights on the impending selection of the Chief Minister of the Bangsamoro Parliament.
Namfrel said they will continue their monitoring efforts through the seating of Bangsamoro Parliament members on October 30 and the selection of the Chief Minister.
"The formation of a governing coalition and the selection of the Chief Minister by the newly-elected Parliament will take place after October 30," said Namfrel.
"These are the next critical steps, and they carry the same weight for the peace process as the election itself," it added.
The poll watchdog said the forthcoming selection process could be intense considering that the BPE results was not dominated by only one group.
"No party has secured the 41 seats needed for a parliamentary majority on its own," said Namfrel. (Anton Banal/SunStar Philippines)
