ARMM gov't launches market building in Sultan Kudarat

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines - Officials on Wednesday launched a market building in Sultan Kudarat town built using funds from the executive department of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

The newly-constructed market building, located along a crossroad interconnecting the Cotabato-Davao and Cotabato-Marawi Highways, was jointly inaugurated by ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman and Sultan Kudarat municipal officials led by Mayor Shameem Mastura.

Hataman’s office bankrolled the construction of the market building, supported with a fund counterpart from the Sultan Kudarat local government unit.

The Hataman administration has earmarked P161 million for various infrastructure projects in Sultan Kudarat next year.

Engineer Don Mustapha Loong, public works secretary of ARMM, said their ongoing projects in Sultan Kudarat, funded with grants from the region’s 2014 and 2015 infrastructure budgets, are being implemented in utmost transparency.

Loong said the projects include arterial road networks designed to link far-flung peasant enclaves to the highways straddling through Sultan Kudarat.

The mayor of Sultan Kudarat had told reporters he is grateful to Hataman and President Benigno Aquino III for allocating huge infrastructure grants for his municipality, something never done by past ARMM governors.

Hataman said his administration’s socio-economic thrusts complements the normalization agenda of the ongoing peace overture between Malacañang and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

The MILF’s main enclave, Camp Darapanan, is located in west of Sultan Kudarat.

Sultan Kudarat, which has no fewer than 30,000 registered voters, is a known political stronghold of the Mastura clan in the first district of Maguindanao.

The Mastura clan also wields clout over thousands of voters in Maguindanao’s nearby Sultan Mastura town.

The acknowledged leader of the Masturas, Datu Tucao, a certified public accountant, is the provincial chairman for Maguindanao of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) Party.

Despite his being an UNA stalwart, Datu Tucao has openly been supporting the reelection bid of Hataman, who belong to the administration’s Liberal Party.