86 BARMM officials graduate from 2-year training

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — A group of local government operations officers graduated Friday from a two-year course to help them better serve constituents in the Bangsamoro region.

Regional officials told reporters who covered the event that the training the 86 LGOOs went through was meant to ensure their efficiency in serving the residents of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Naguib Sinarimbo, BARMM’s local government minister, said Friday the 86 trainees are from the five component provinces of the Bangsamoro region —Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

He said the Bangsamoro regional leadership is grateful to the Local Government Academy of the Department of the Interior and Local Government for helping the Ministry of the Interior and Local Goverment-BARMM for the training.

Sinarimbo called the 86 LGOOs public service “frontliners” who are to serve BARMM residents regardless of religions and ethnic identities.

"These graduates, I am mighty proud of, will form part of the core of the MILG. With this training and the values instilled in them, I am sure they will become instruments of good governance in the Bangsamoro autonomous region," Sinarimbo said.  

The graduation rites on Friday were held at the Shariff Kabunsuan Cultural Complex inside the 32-hectare BARMM capitol and was graced by Thelma Vicina of DILG's Local Government Academy, DILG Assistant Secretary Florida Dijan and Bangsamoro Senior Minister Abdulraof Macacua.

BARMM chief minister Ahod Ebrahim spoke to the 86 LGOOs during the program by teleconference and challenged them to live up to the ideals of the newly-created Bangsamoro region.

The still 29-month BARMM that replaced the 29-year-old Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in early 2019 is a product of 22 years of peace talks between Malacañang and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.