Covenant proposed to stop ARMM OICs from running in 2013 polls

Officials who will be appointed by President Benigno Aquino III to be in charge of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao for the next two years maybe allowed by law to seek elective post but they will not be able to do it. This is because they will need to enter into a covenant with Malacañang that they will not run in 2013, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said in a press briefing Thursday. “We stand by our commitment that those OICs who will introduce reforms, those OICs who will be heading this ARMM in the next two years, will do so with no purpose of enriching themselves or for political ambitions. So, klaro tayo doon," he said. He said President Aquino would have wanted a provision barring the OICs from seeking elective post included in the ARMM poll postponement law but it was deleted by the Senate. He said the provision’s removal was not so much as to say that the OICs can run but to obviate any question on unconstitutionality of the particular provision. “There is a belief that you cannot restrict a person from running for a public position. That’s the only reason it was taken away," he said. “So what we will do is ask the OICs to undertake a covenant not to run because that’s the only way that we can ask them not to do so. We cannot do so legally because that will be unconstitutional," Lacierda said. Drafting the guidelines Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, Peace Process Adviser Teresita ‘Ging’ Deles and Political Adviser Ronald Llamas are now drafting the guidelines for the selection of the OICs. Lacierda assured the process would be transparent, inclusive and consultative. “Right now, they’re trying to come up with a process that will be inclusive and will consult the stakeholders," he said. “The idea here is we appoint someone who is responsible, who will promote the reform efforts of the Aquino administration," he explained. “We will make sure that we will introduce reform for the two years that we are here and in 2013, we synchronize the elections and make sure polls will be democratically held free from anomalies." He said President Aquino will sign the bill probably next week after Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte sign the enrolled copy of the bill. The House of Representatives on Tuesday ratified the ARMM postponement bill which the Senate approved on Monday. There is no need for a bicameral conference committee to meet because the modifications were minor, Belmonte earlier said. The House version of the bill had the provision — later deleted by the Senate — banning OICs to be appointed in September from running in the 2013 ARMM polls. —MRT/VS, GMA News