Phaseout of ARMM employees to start November

Cotabato City  – More than 500 permanent employees of the defunct Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will undergo phasing out starting November this year according to Bangsamoro Government Attorney General Sha Elijah Alba.

The 500 employees belong to the first batch of the 6,000 ARMM permanent personnel who will be phased out before this year ends. Only those in the sectors of education, health, and social services are exempted in the phasing out.

“Ang first batch, ang last day of service nila would be October 31st, second batch is November 30th, and the third and last batch is on December 31st,” said Alba during the regular Kapihan sa Bangsamoro on Tuesday, October 15.

Article XVI Section 10 of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) states that the affected personnel who opt to retire or be separated shall be entitled to any of the following applicable incentives:

-    100% of the monthly basic salary for every year of government service computed starting from the first year for those who have rendered 1 year to less than 5 years of service;

-    150% of the actual monthly salary for every year of government service computed starting from the first year for those who have rendered 5 years of service but less than 10 years; or

-    Two months of actual monthly salary for every year of government service computed starting from the first year for those who have rendered 10 years or more of service.

Alba said the first batch can start claiming their separation incentives by November 15 as scheduled by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

The Office of the Chief Minister (OCM), Office of the Attorney General (OAG), Cabinet Secretary Asnin Pendatun, and representatives from the different BARMM ministries recently met with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to finalize the timeline for the submission of documents needed for the processing of separation incentives of the employees.

She said the documents were already submitted on Friday, October 11, through the Bangsamoro Government’s Manila Liaison Office (MLO).

“Ang commitment po ng DBM is kapag all the documents are in order, makukuha na ang separation pay nila (1st batch) by November 15, 2019,” Alba said.

Article XVI, Section 10 of the BOL also states that the “affected personnel who are retired or are separated from the service shall not be re-employed in any agency of the Bangsamoro Government of the National government, including government-owned or controlled corporations for a period of (5) five years. The retired or separated personnel who are re-employed during the prohibited period shall refund, on a pro-rated basis, the separation incentives they received under this Section.”

Alba said the hiring for plantilla positions in the BARMM will be opened only when the Bangsamoro Parliament has approved the staffing pattern proposed by the Ministry of Finance, Budget and Management (MFBM).

“We need to await the approval of the staffing pattern […] once it is approved by the Parliament, that’s the only time that we can publish the permanent positions for application,” Alba said. (Bureau of Public Information)

MOH-BARMM to conduct mass polio immunization in Marawi City

Cotabato City ( – To prevent the outbreak of the poliovirus in the Bangsamoro region, the Ministry of Health of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (MOH-BARMM) will conduct a mass polio immunization campaign dubbed 'Sabayang Kontra Polio' in Marawi City.

This was following the confirmation of a poliovirus case in a 3-year old girl from the province of Lanao del Sur on September 16 this year, the first polio case since its eradication in the Philippines 19 years ago.

MOH-BARMM Information Officer Saida Diocolano-Ali said on Monday, October 7, that the immunization campaign will be conducted on October 14 – 27, where children aged from zero to five years will be given free vaccination against polio.

Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a highly infectious disease that affects the spinal cord causing muscle weakness and paralysis and can eventually lead to death. It is caused by the poliovirus that spreads from person to person. Though incurable, polio can be prevented through vaccination.

‘Vaccination is Halal’

The MOH-BARMM and the Regional Darul Ifta’ had earlier issued a Fatwa or Islamic ruling on immunization on March 12, 2019 to promote the importance of vaccination as a halal and safe way for Muslims to prevent some common diseases.

Many parents in the region refuse to have their children immunized because “they were unsure if vaccination was consistent with their faith.”

MOH Minister Dr. Safrullah Dipatuan said “immunization prevents deaths and suffering from vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, tetanus, polio, pneumonia, hepatitis, diphtheria, rubella and mumps.” (Bureau of Public Information)