By NONOY E LACSON
February 14, 2010, 3:05pm
ZAMBOANGA CITY – City Mayor Celso Lobregat expressed his strong objection to make this city as the provisional seat of the proposed Autonomous Region in Southwestern Mindanao.
Lobregat, in a letter to House Speaker Prospero C. Nograles, strongly objects to the passage of House Bill (HB) 4963, making this city as provisional seat of the proposed Autonomous Region in Southwestern Mindanao as contained in Section 3, Article 2 of the Bill.
He said Rep. Maria Isabel Climaco (1st District, Zamboanga City) furnished him a copy of HB 4963, introduced by Tawi-Tawi Rep. Nur Jaafar.
The bill amending Republic Act (RA) 6734 is titled “An Act Providing for an Organic Act for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) as amended by RA 9054, providing for the creation of the Autonomous Region in Southwestern Mindanao, and the Autonomous Region in Central Mindanao.”
Lobregat specifically cited Section 3, Article 2 of the said bill which states that “Until the seat of the Regional Government is transferred as provided, the provisional seat of the Autonomous Region in Southwestern Mindanao shall be in Zamboanga City, and the Autonomous Region in Central Mindanao shall be in Cotabato City.
“The Regional Assembly, elected after the plebiscite, shall within its term identify the site of the permanent seat of the regional government.”
The bill also provides that the a plebiscite will be held simultaneously with the May 2010 local and national elections and that the first regional elections for the elective officials of the Autonomous Regions will be held on the second Monday of August 2011.
The bill states that a plebiscite will be conducted at each and every village in the provinces of Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibugay, and the cities of Isabela, Pagadian, Dipolog, Dapitan, and Zamboanga in Southwestern Mindanao; and each and in every village in the provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Sultan Kudarat, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Saranggani, and the cities of Cotabato, Marawi, Iligan, Kidapawan, General Santos, Koronadal, and Tacurong in Central Mindanao.
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/243471/official-objects-plan
