IN NUMBERS: BARMM’s first elected parliament - Rappler

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What kind of parliament will lead the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) for the next five years?

The weeks leading to the parliament’s first session on October 30 will give the Bangsamoro people a preview of how their different elected officials will work together, especially with no single party holding the majority or 41 seats.

This means two or more parties must form a coalition to reach that majority. Without it, the  regional parliament will be unable to elect a chief minister, or the head of the BARMM government’s executive branch.

But experts have pointed out that forming a majority should go beyond securing key positions like the chief minister post. Parties in the coalition should establish a clear governance agenda so the governing majority can remain stable enough to survive disagreements and defections. 

Understanding the composition of the incoming parliament will show where that vision may be leaning.

The 80 members of the parliament come from different backgrounds and demographics that can influence the laws they vote for and pass.

The numbers show that half of the elected members of parliament (MPs) previously served in the region’s interim legislative body, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Parliament.

And despite safeguards in electoral laws, the first elected Bangsamoro Parliament has a few women only and numerous relatives among its ranks. Can the BARMM’s next leaders pave the way for a more inclusive government in the next election?

Here’s a rundown of the key figures needed to understand what the dynamics of the BARMM’s first-ever elected parliament may be like in the next five years.

In the BARMM’s electoral law, 30% of regional parliamentary political party nominees must be women. 

But the majority of the female candidates were ranked lower on nominee lists, as earlier pointed out by election watchdog Legal Network for Truthful Elections, or LENTE. No such gender threshold was enforced for the district and sectoral seats either, which make up half of the parliament.

In the end, only 13 women will be in the upcoming parliament — or only 16.25%, a far cry from the 30% the law first envisioned.

For a little less than half of the elected MPs, this will not be their first time in the Bangsamoro Parliament. Thirty-nine of them had been appointed to the BTA Parliament at least once.

Of the newly-elected MPs, 11 had been appointed to the regional parliament for all three terms since the BARMM was created in 2019. Most of them are Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members, in accordance with the law requiring 41 members of the BTA Parliament to come from the ex-rebel group.

Despite anti-political dynasty provisions in the BARMM’s electoral and local governance codes, several MPs still share the same middle and last names. This is because the full implementation of such provisions will start in 2028, while the 2026 election banned familial relationships only within the same regional political party.

There are four Adiongs in the parliament. Two are direct relatives of Lanao del Sur Governor Mamintal Adiong Jr.: Mamintal “Mikee” Raki-in Adiong III is his son, while Abdul Rauf is the governor’s nephew. 

Aside from them, there are other MPs who are related to each other: Father-and-son pair Mansor Blah Ebrahim and Ahod “Al Haj Murad” B. Ebrahim, who is MILF and United Bangsamoro Justice Party chair; and Datucan Abas (more commonly known by his nom de guerre, Mohagher Iqbal) and former Commission on Elections chair Sheriff Abas, who are uncle and nephew, respectively.

Less than a fourth of the Bangsamoro Parliament come from the BARMM’s island provinces of Basilan and Tawi-Tawi. This proportion is crucial for the provinces that have long lamented the uneven progress in the region that favors the mainland provinces. (READ MORE: How can the next BARMM gov’t make sure no one is left behind?) 

Thirty-five percent of the new members of parliament are from Generation X, aged 46 to 61. After them, 25 elected MPs are Baby Boomers aged 61 and above — or 31.25% of the incoming parliament.

Mohagher Iqbal is the oldest MP at 79 years old. – with reports from Jedidiah Rollinas, Jade Florido, and Stephanie Agatha Gonzalvo/Rappler.com

Jedidiah Rollinas, Jade Florido, and Stephanie Agatha Gonzalvo are volunteers of Rappler’s Research and Data unit.