COTABATO CITY – Showing support and unity, leaders of former Moro rebel groups will attend regional governor Mujiv Hataman’s final address to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) on Wednesday.
Gov. Hataman, in his 2017 State of the Region Address, anticipated the approaching transition from the ARMM to the new Bangsamoro government. “Maaring ito na ang huling pagkakataon at nagpapasalamat ako sa inyong lahat hindi bilang pagwawakas ng aklat kundi paglipat lamang ng susunod at mas magandang kwento sa ating kabanata. Tuloy ang ating kwento bilang Moro. Tara na’t isulat natin ito,” he said.
Earlier this month, Gov. Hataman together with Al-Hajj Murad Ebrahim of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Muslimin Sema of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) expressed their support to the BOL by encouraging everyone to vote next month.
The ARMM governor, in his previous remarks, vowed to voluntarily step down from his position as the region’s chief executive once the plebiscite is done. “Once na ma-ratify ang BOL, personal at boluntaryo akong bababa sa aking pwesto upang bigyang daan ang mga kapatid natin sa Bangsamoro Transitional Authority na pamunuan at gawin ang mga nararapat para sa Bangsamoro,” he said.
In anticipation of the plebiscite, Gov. Hataman tasked all the ARMM agencies to have all the documents ready for the transition to a new Bangsamoro political entity.
“Ihanda natin ang lahat para sa mga bagong uupo sa pamahalaan dahil ayaw natin na maranasan nila ang pinagdaanan natin noong unang upo natin sa regional government,” the governor said referring to problems he encountered when he assumed as ARMM officer-in-charge (OIC) in 2011.
Gov. Hataman is expected to report his administration’s accomplishments including development plans for the Bangsamoro. Civil society groups have noted that Gov. Hataman’s brand of leadership, which is characterized by transparency and innovation, has allowed ARMM to redeem itself from being labeled a “failed experiment” into a working government and converting the region into an emerging place of growth.
He is the seventh regional governor of the ARMM. He was first appointed as an OIC governor in December 2011. He then won a three-year term in the election held in 2013. After addressing his constituents on December 19, the governor will lead the launching of the book ‘Mujiv Hataman: The Biography,’ inside the ORG Compound. It will be followed by the closing ceremony of ‘Pakaradjaan’, the year-long anniversary celebration of the ARMM. (Bureau of Public Information)
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