Comelec to push with COC filing for BARMM polls despite fatal Maguindanao shooting

The filing of the certificates of candidacy (COC) for the first-ever Bangsamoro parliamentary elections next year will not be postponed despite the October 8 incident that left one person dead and several others wounded in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao del Sur, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Sunday.

Comelec chairman George Garcia said that COC filing for the BARMM polls will push through on November 4 to 9, 2024, with the election proper set on May 12, 2025, simultaneous with the national and local elections.

“Hindi po natin gagawin ‘yan (postponement). Tayo ay magtutuloy-tuloy sa filing ng COC sapagkat hindi magpapatinag ang inyong komisyon, ang ating PNP at AFP, sa pagtutulungan ng iba pang ahensya ng pamahalaan,” he said in a Super Radyo dzBB interview.

(We will not postpone the COC filing because the Comelec, PNP, and AFP will not be deterred and will continue to work together with other government agencies.)

“Dahil kung tayo’y matatakot sa isang napaka-liit na insidente lang, paano pa tayo makakapag-conduct ng malinis at maayos na halalan sa ating bansa? So ibig sabihin, minsan po ay may mga maliliit, pulo pulo ‘tong mga ganyang problema pero sa kabuuan naman nagiging maayos,” he added.

(If we are afraid of one very small incident, how can we conduct clean and orderly elections in our country? Sometimes, we really face small problems such as this, but generally, it turns out alright.)

The shooting incident resulted in one person dead and five others wounded in Shariff Aguak on October 8, the last day of the COC filing for the 2025 midterm polls.

Shariff Aguak Municipal Police Station said misinformation could have triggered the tension that ended in the death of a barangay peacekeeping action team member.

The Comelec-BARMM, meanwhile, downplayed the incident, saying it was an isolated case and that the COC filing in BARMM was “generally peaceful.” —RF, GMA Integrated News