Rehab of ARMM office completed in time for transition

COTABATO CITY, Philippines   – The refurbished office of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) is now open to the public.

The 38-year-old building, now named ARMM Bangsamoro Office, was rehabilitated with a P51.4-million allocation in preparation for ARMM’s transition into a Bangsamoro entity.

ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman said it was the first time the structure was rehabilitated since it was built in 1976.

Hataman said they will turn over the building along with other properties and assets of the ARMM to the national government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front after the measure deactivating the regional government and establishing a MILFront-led Bangsamoro entity, is enacted into law and ratified in a plebiscite.

The inauguration of the rehabilitated building was witnessed by ARMM officials, among them Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Adiong, Jr., representatives from the provincial government of Maguindanao and members of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division.

Oblate missionary Eliseo Mercado Jr., executive director of the Institute for Autonomy and Governance, a partner entity of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung of Germany, also attended the event.

ARMM’s public works secretary, Hadji Emil Sadain, said the funds spent for the improvement of the building were sourced from savings of the regional government.

He said P35,464,657 worth of savings were released for the building repair, augmented with a P15,949,720 grant from  Hataman’s office.