ARMM officials ask for P120-M subsidy

COTABATO CITY — Officials of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) have asked for a P120-million subsidy from the national government to enable them to complete dozens of programmed Sallam (peace) bridges that would supposedly connect hostile communities to trading centers in the ARMM provinces.

Members of the ARMM Regional Planning and Development Board (RPDB), chaired by Gov. Zaldy Ampatuan, passed during a meeting in Davao City on Friday a resolution urging Malacañang to allocate P120 million for the completion of the bridges.

All of the five provincial governors in the ARMM are voting members of the RPDB, where the Regional Assembly, known as the region’s "little Congress," is also represented.

For Ampatuan, who was sworn in as the ARMM’s fifth governor on Sept. 30 last year, the immediate completion of the stalled bridge projects in different municipalities in the autonomous region will enhance the peace process.

"These bridges will improve the productivity of farmers in remote areas. They will have easy access to trading centers and, in effect, earn more by having direct linkages with traders in the markets," Ampatuan said.

He added that accelerating the socio-economic growth of impoverished communities in flashpoint areas in the ARMM is an effective means of enhancing the Southern Mindanao peace process. — John Unson