Palace denies railroading bill for ARMM poll postponement

With just three more session days to go in Congress, Malacañang has denied that it is railroading a proposed law postponing elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). Presidential deputy spokesperson Abigail Valte said the Palace already certified the bill as urgent. The “support" for the delayed polls stemmed from “meaningful debates and discussions" on the matter, she pointed out. “We are not railroading this priority measure. We do need to pass the bill early so the Commission on Elections will know whether to prepare for the elections in the region," Valte said in Filipino on government-run dzRB radio. She also expressed confidence that the bill will gain support in Congress, based on “informal discussions" the lawmakers have had among themselves. “Since we certified the bill as a priority measure, from what we understand, legislators in the House of Representatives already conducted informal discussions among themselves. You cannot say there was no meaningful debate or discussion on this matter," Valte said. House Bill 4146 seeks to synchronize the August 2011 ARMM polls to the 2013 national elections. The ARMM elections were initially scheduled for Aug. 8 this year. Valte said that at least four of five ARMM governors had gone to Malacañang to express support for the postponement of the elections. “The governors themselves said they consulted their constituents and they needed no convincing to seek the postponement of the elections. They know this will be helpful in peace and order," she said. “It is not President Aquino’s style to make threats just to pass something he believes will help Filipinos," she added. — JE, GMA News