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By William B. Depasupil, Reporter
Voting 8-6, the Supreme Court has declared as
void the creation of the province of Shariff Kabunsuan, one of the
six provinces in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
The Court en banc, in a 33-page resolution
penned by Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, explained that Muslim
Mindanao Autonomy (MMA) Act 20, which was enacted by the ARMM
legislative assembly to create the province of Shariff Kabunsuan, is
void because it is only Congress that has the power under the
Constitution to create cities and provinces.
“Only Congress can create provinces and cities
because the creation of provinces and cities necessarily includes
the creation of legislative districts,” the 33-page decision
penned by Justice Antonio Carpio reads.
Shariff Kabunsuan was formerly part of the
province of Maguindanao. It is composed of the municipalities of
Barira, Buldon, Satu Odin Sinsuat, Kabuntalan, Matanog, Parang,
Sultan Kudarat, Sultan Mastura and Upi, all formerly belonging to
the First District of Maguindanao.
Later, three new municipalities, Sultan Mastura,
Northern Kabuntalan and Datu Blah Sinsuat, were carved out of the
original nine municipalities consisting the new province, bringing
to 11 its total number of municipalities. Maguindanao was left with
the whole second legislative district and Cotabato City.
Shariff Kabunsuan became a separate
province by virtue of MMA Act 20, which was ratified by the ARMM
Regional Assembly on August 28, 2006. The ratification was upheld in
a plebiscite on October 29, 2006.
The ARMM Regional Assembly, under Section
19, Article VI of Republic Act 9054 (An Act to Strengthen and
Expand the Organic Act for the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao), has the power to create provinces.
Also, under Republic Act 140 or the Expanded
ARMM Law, the ARMM Regional Assembly has also the power to create
new local government units (LGUs) and to set its own criteria in
creating, dividing, merging or abolishing LGUs.
The other provinces of ARMM are Basilan, Lanao
del Sur, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.
In its ruling, the Supreme Court ruled that
Section 19, Article VI of Republic Act 9054 is unconstitutional as
it grants to the ARMM Regional Assembly the power to create
provinces and cities. It also declared MMA Act 20, which created the
province of Shariff Kabunsuan, as void while maintaining the
validity of Resolution 7902 of the Commission on Elections.
Resolution 7902, which amended Resolution
07-0407, renamed the legislative district as “Shariff
Kabunsuan Province with Cotabato City [formerly First District of
Maguindanao with Cotabato City].”
“The ARMM Regional Assembly cannot
create a province without a legislative district because the
Constitution mandates that every province shall have a legislative
district,” the Supreme Court said.
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