Part of the transition period in Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur | |
Date | October 13, 2022 [lower-alpha 1] – present |
---|---|
Location | Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines |
Type | Leadership crisis |
Theme | Legitimacy of province officials including the: |
Cause | Postponement of the Maguindanao division plebiscite after the May 2022 Philippine national elections and the arising conflict on the provision in the charter law of Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur |
Participants | Claimants to the governor position: Maguindanao del Sur Contents
Maguindanao del Norte Abdulraof Macacua (recognized) Ainee Sinsuat (claimant as per province charter) |
Following the creation of the Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur provinces in the Philippines, the interim leadership of the two provinces was uncertain since there is a legal controversy arising from postponing the relevant plebiscite to 2022.
As per the charter of the provinces, former Maguindanao governor Mariam Mangudadatu was to become Maguindanao del Sur governor, while her vice governor Ainee Sinsuat was to become governor of Maguindanao del Norte.[ clarification needed ] However the relevant provision presumes that the division plebiscite would be held prior to the May 2022 national elections. However the plebiscite was postponed to September 2022.
Officials, including Mangudadatu and Sinsuat, would assumed office as per the province charter on October 13, 2022. However their assumption was not recognized by the Bangsamoro and Philippine national governments.
In April 2023, President Bongbong Marcos would appoint his own set of officials. For Maguindanao del Sur, Marcos would appoint Mangudadatu as Officer in Charge (OIC) governor effectively ending the crisis in the province. However he appointed a different set of officials from those in 2022 for Maguindanao del Norte. He appointed Abdulraof Macacua as governor while naming Sinsuat as his vice governor.
In August 2023, Sinsuat vacated her position as vice governor and claimed to be the legitimate acting governor of Maguindanao del Norte citing a Supreme Court ruling.
Following the 2022 Maguindanao division plebiscite of September 17, 2022, Maguindanao was split into Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte provinces. [1] The charter legislation of the two provinces, Republic Act No. 11550 provides for an acting governors for the newly formed subdivisions. [2] [3]
Mariam Mangudadatu, the last governor of Maguindanao was supposed to assume the position of governor of Maguindanao del Sur. While Ainee Sinsuat, the last vice governor of Maguindanao was supposed to assume the position of governor of Maguindanao del Norte. [2] [3]
However this was uncertain, since the relevant provision which dictates the initial province officials presumes that the plebiscite would be held before the May 2022 national elections but the division vote was postponed after that date. [2] [3]
Officials of the Newly Created Provinces. - (a) The elective officials of the newly created provinces shall be elected on the second Monday of May 2022 national and local elections: Provided, That if this Act is approved and ratified within six (6) months or moreprior to the 2022 national and local elections , the vice governor [lower-alpha 2] and the next ranking elective member of the sangguniang panlalawigan of the present Province of Maguindanao, who are residents of the new Maguindanao del Norte shall assume as its acting governor and acting vice governor, respectively, and both shall continue to serve in office until their successors shall have been elected and qualified in the 2022 national and local elections.
— Section 50, Article IX: Transitory and Final Provisions, Republic Act No. 11550 (2021)
The incumbent governor of the present Province of Maguindanao [lower-alpha 3] shall remain as governor of the Province of Maguindanao del Sur.
— Section 50d, Article IX: Transitory and Final Provisions, Republic Act No. 11550 (2021)
This led to the Commission on Elections to come up with a legal opinion. [4] [2] The position was issued on September 28, 2022, where the election body conclude that only the Department of the Interior and Local Government could appoint the first officials of the province. [3]
The initial set of officials for the two new provinces would take the oath on October 13, 2022. [5] The Bangsamoro regional government has refused to recognized the officials taking note the "legal controversy" arising from postponing the plebiscite. [6]
On April 5, 2023, President Bongbong Marcos appointed his own Officer in Charge (OIC) officials in the two provinces. [7]
Ainee Sinsuat on October 13, 2022 assumed the position of acting governor of Maguindanao del Norte citing the province charter. Sharifudin Mastura is her acting vice governor. [5]
On April 5, 2023, President Bongbong Marcos appointed Abdulraof Macacua as the Officer in Charge (OIC) governor of the province. Sinsuat, who had presumably assumed the role of acting governor, would be named as OIC vice governor. [8]
On April 28, 2023, President Bongbong Marcos reappointed Macacua as the full pledged governor of the Maguindanao del Norte together with other officials of the provincial government. [9] Mariam Mangudadatu would oppose Macacua's appointment until May 3, 2023. [10]
On August 14, 2023, Sinsuat vacated her position as vice governor and revived her claim as the legitimate acting governor of Maguindanao del Norte once again citing a June Supreme Court ruling. Shariffudin Mastura also reassumed the position of acting vice governor. [11] The Bangsamoro regional government does not recognize Sinsuat's claim. [12]
On October 13, 2022, Mariam Mangudadatu assumed the position of Maguindanao del Sur acting governor as per the province charter. Nathaniel Midtimbang is her acting vice governor. [5]
Mangudadatu would be affirmed as governor of the province on April 5, 2023, when President Bongbong Marcos named her as Officer in Charge (OIC) of the province. Midtimbang likewise was named OIC vice governor. [13] However she would oppose the appointment as OIC, believing she already has mandate to be acting governor as per the province's charter law. [14]
However, Mangudadatu took oath as OIC of the province on April 28, 2023, ending the leadership crisis in Maguindanao del Norte. [15]
Date | Maguindanao del Norte | Maguindanao del Sur | Notes | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Governor | Vice Governor | Governor | Vice Governor | ||
September 17, 2022–October 13, 2022 | Vacant | ||||
October 13, 2022–April 5, 2023 | Ainee Sinsuat (unrecognized) | Sharifudin Mastura (unrecognized) | Mariam Mangudadatu (unrecognized) | Nathaniel Midtimbang (unrecognized) | Officials unilaterally assumed position; Unrecognized by the Philippine national and Bangsamoro regional government. |
April 5, 2023–present | Abdulraof Macacua (recognized) | Ainee Sinsuat (until August 14, 2023) Vacant (from August 14, 2023) | Mariam Mangudadatu | Nathaniel Midtimbang | Appointees by President Bongbong Marcos. Mariam Mangudadatu disputes her status as Officer in Charge until April 28, 2023 |
Ainee Sinsuat (claims to be Acting; from August 14, 2023) | Sharifudin Mastura (claims to be Acting; from August 14, 2023 | Ainee Sinsuat from August 14, 2023 claims to be acting governor. |
In the Philippines, provinces are one of its primary political and administrative divisions. There are 82 provinces at present, which are further subdivided into component cities and municipalities. The local government units in the National Capital Region, as well as independent cities, are independent of any provincial government. Each province is governed by an elected legislature called the Sangguniang Panlalawigan and an elected governor.
Maguindanao was a province of the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). From 2014 to 2022, its provincial capital was Buluan, but the legislative branch of government, the Maguindanao Provincial Board, convened at the old provincial capitol in Sultan Kudarat. It bordered Lanao del Sur to the north, Cotabato to the east, Sultan Kudarat to the south, and Illana Bay to the west.
The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao was an autonomous region of the Philippines, located in the Mindanao island group of the Philippines, that consisted of five predominantly Muslim provinces: Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi. It was the only region that had its own government. The region's de facto seat of government was Cotabato City, although this self-governing city was outside its jurisdiction.
Buluan, officially the Municipality of Buluan, is a 4th class municipality and capital of the province of Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 57,406 people.
Datu Montawal, officially the Municipality of Datu Montawal, is a 5th class municipality in the province of Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 37,314 people.
The legislative districts of Maguindanao were the representations of the province of Maguindanao and the independent component city of Cotabato in the various national legislatures of the Philippines. The province and the city were represented in the lower house of the Congress of the Philippines through their first and second congressional districts from 1987–2022.
Mangudadatu, officially the Municipality of Mangudadatu, is a municipality in the province of Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 26,203 people.
Pandag, officially the Municipality of Pandag, is a municipality in the province of Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 26,356 people.
Bangsamoro, officially the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, is an autonomous region in the Philippines, located in the southwestern portion of the island of Mindanao.
Mariam Sangki-Mangudadatu is a Filipina politician who has been the chief executive of Maguindanao del Sur since its division from Maguindanao in 2022. Her position is currently disputed as her assumption as acting governor remains unrecognized by the Bangsamoro and national governments, the latter of which recognizes her only as the officer in charge of the province. Previously, she was the 11th and 1st female governor of Maguindanao, serving from 2019 to 2022.
Abdulraof A. Macacua, also known by his nom de guerreSammy Gambar, is a Filipino politician who is the Governor of Maguindanao del Norte.
The Maguindanao Provincial Board was the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of the Philippine province of Maguindanao.
The Maguindanao division plebiscite was held in the province of Maguindanao, Philippines, on September 17, 2022, more than four months after the May 9 national and local elections, after having been postponed from its planned plebiscite in or before August 2021. As required by Republic Act No. 11550, it was conducted to seek the consent of the residents of Maguindanao on the proposal to divide the province into two separate provinces that will henceforth be named Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur.
Maguindanao del Norte, officially the Province of Maguindanao del Norte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in Mindanao. Its capital is the municipality of Datu Odin Sinsuat. It borders Cotabato province to the east, Lanao del Sur to the north, Maguindanao del Sur to the south-east, and Sultan Kudarat to the south.
Maguindanao del Sur, officially the Province of Maguindanao del Sur, is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in Mindanao. Its capital is the municipality of Buluan near the city of Tacurong in the neighboring province of Sultan Kudarat. It borders Cotabato province to the east, Maguindanao del Norte to the west, and Sultan Kudarat to the south.
Fatima Ainee Limbona-Sinsuat is a Filipina politician who currently serves as the Vice Governor of Maguindanao del Norte. She was the last Vice Governor of Maguindanao prior to its dissolution into two provinces in 2022.
The governor of Maguindanao del Norte is the highest political office in the province of Maguindanao del Norte, Philippines.
The governor of Maguindanao del Sur is the highest political office in the province of Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines.
The legislative district of Maguindanao del Norte were the representations of the province of Maguindanao del Norte and the independent component city of Cotabato in the various national legislatures of the Philippines. The province and the city were represented in the lower house of the Congress of the Philippines through their lone congressional district.
The lone Legislative District of Maguindanao del Sur is the representation of the province of Maguindanao del Sur in the Philippine House of Representatives. Maguindanao was part of the representation of Maguindanao prior to its division in 2022. It will be granted its representation in the 14th Congress.