Local executives in Central Mindanao and Bangsamoro regional officials on Wednesday, October 22, praised President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for reappointing the governor of Cotabato province as chairperson of the Regional Development Council 12 until 2028.
Officials from the Department of Economy, Planning and Development 12 (DEPDev 12), formerly known as the National Economic Development 12, told reporters that Marcos signed the reappointment of Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Taliño Mendoza as chairperson of the Regional Development Council 12 (RDC 12) for the term 2025 to 2028 on October 16.
Local government officials in Cotabato, one of the four provinces in Region 12, and in the eight newly-established Bangsamoro towns in the province, have expressed their gratitude to Marcos for granting Mendoza the presidential approval to lead the non-political RDC 12 until 2028.
‘For that, we are grateful to President Marcos,’ Mayor Rolando Sacdalan of Midsayap, touted as the most progressive town in Cotabato province, said.
Cotabato province has 17 towns and 45 barangays in its capital, Kidapawan City. There are 63 predominantly-Moro barangays in the province that were grouped into eight towns last year via separate enabling measures by the 80-seat parliament of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
BARMM’s labor and employment minister, Muslimin Sema, who is chairman of the central committee of the Moro National Liberation Front, and the chief minister of the Bangsamoro region, Abdulrauf Macacua, separately told reporters that they will continue to support Mendoza’s leadership in the RDC 12.
‘The Mendoza-led RDC 12 does not cover the Bangsamoro region, but it focuses a lot on the welfare of the Moro communities in municipalities and cities in Administrative Region 12. She deserves our commitment to help her achieve the community welfare goals of the RDC-12,’ Sema said on Wednesday.
DEPDev 12 officials said they still have no idea who Marcos will appoint as vice chairperson of RDC 12 for the term 2025 to 2028.
The regional director of DEPDev 12 functions as ex-officio vice chairperson of the council, according to DEPDev 12 officials in its regional office in Koronadal City, the capital of South Cotabato.
Macacua, the highest-ranking member of the 80-seat Bangsamoro regional parliament, expressed their satisfaction with Mendoza’s continued tenure as RDC 12 chairperson.
‘She is a non-Moro but is a staunch supporter of the national government’s Mindanao peace process covering Moro communities in Southern Mindanao,’ Macacua, chief of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, said.
South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. told reporters via text message that he is thankful to Marcos for allowing Mendoza to lead the RDC 12 until 2028.
Municipal officials in the eight Bangsamoro towns in Cotabato province had posted on Facebook their assurance to help Mendoza push the regional peace and security initiatives of the RDC-12 forward.