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Speaker of the Bangsamoro Parliament

The speaker of the Bangsamoro Parliament () is the presiding officer of the Bangsamoro Parliament, the regional legislature of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) of the Philippines.

The current speaker of the Parliament is Mohammad Yacob, elected on October 21, 2025.

History

Prior to the establishment of the Bangsamoro Parliament on March 29, 2019, Chief Minister Murad Ebrahim named Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) leader Ghazali Jaafar as the person he preferred to become the first speaker of the parliament with lawyer and former Lanao del Sur congressman Pangalian Balindong as Jaafar's deputy. However, Jaafar died on March 13, 2019 prior to the first convening of the parliament.

At the start of the inaugural session of the parliament, there were two nominees for the speakership, Balindong and Laisa Alamia, with the former elected by the interim Bangsamoro Parliament as its speaker. Hatimil Hassan was elected as Balindong's deputy speaker. Additional co-deputies were elected by the parliament at later dates.

Pangalian Balindong died on October 2, 2025. An election for his successor was held on October 21, 2025, with Mohammad Yacob, a fellow MILF nominee, being sworn in as the new speaker.

Function

The speaker is the presiding officer of the Bangsamoro Parliament whose role is to secure the honor of the parliament, ensure the rights and privileges of its members, and assure public access to its proceedings. The same presiding role could also be fulfilled by the speaker's deputies.

Furthermore, according to Rule IV, Section 14 of the Rules, Procedures, and Practices of the Parliament, the duties and powers of the speaker include the following:

  • Preside on all plenary sessions of the Parliament, except as hereunder otherwise provided. He/she shall open, conduct, and close each session day
  • Be responsible for the management of the proceedings and conduct of business of the Parliament
  • Maintain proper order and ensure that the right procedures are followed
  • Remain impartial during all debates and if he/she wishes to participate in the debate, he/she shall temporarily relinquish the chair
  • Vote only to break a tie
  • Be responsible over the use of the resources and facilities of the Parliament
  • Conduct regular monthly caucus of all Members of the Parliament or as often as may be necessary to discuss priority measures and to facilitate dialogue, consensus and actions on issues and concerns affecting the Parliament and the performance of its functions
  • Exercise general supervision over all committees and, in furtherance thereof, conduct regular monthly meetings with the chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of all Statutory and Parliamentary Committees to set legislative targets, review performance in the attainment of targets, ensure that the priority legislative measures of committees are attuned to the legislative agenda of the Parliament and resolve such issues and concerns that affect the operations and performance of the committees
  • Designate a Member of the Parliament as temporary presiding officer after informing the Deputy Speakers; provided, that any such designation shall be effective for one session day only
  • Sign all acts, resolutions, and bills that may be issued by or upon order of the Parliament

The speaker also has administrative supervision over legislative personnel, staff, and secretariat of the Bangsamoro Parliament and is also the appointing authority of all career positions within the parliament. However, the speaker is mandated to consult with the chief minister first for appointments of positions which has a salary grade of 25 and above. The speaker must also present to the chief minister every bill before signing into law, and for him to submit a certified true copy of all laws and resolutions approved by the Parliament to the president and to the national Congress.

Election

The speaker is elected by a majority vote of all members of the Parliament through a standing vote without explanation. Should there be more than two nominees and none received the required majority, a run-off election between the two nominees who obtained the most number of votes is held. Abstentions are not allowed during a run-off election.

The following is a list of elections for Speaker of the Bangsamoro Parliament:

March 2019

An election for speaker of the Bangsamoro Parliament took place on March 29, 2019, at the start of the first interim parliament. Pangalian Balindong received a majority of the votes cast and was elected speaker.

September 2022

An election for speaker took place on September 15, 2022, at the start of the second interim parliament. Pangalian Balindong received a majority of the votes cast and was re-elected speaker.

October 2025

On October 2, 2025, Pangalian Balindong died, leaving the position of the speaker of the Parliament vacant. Consequently, an intra-term election for a new speaker was held on October 21, 2025, during the second interim parliament. Mohammad Yacob received a majority of the votes cast and was elected speaker.

List of speakers

Bangsamoro Transition Authority Parliament (since 2019)

Timeline

Deputy Speaker of the Bangsamoro Parliament

Multiple deputy speakers are elected by the Parliament with the following duties and powers:

  • Take turns in presiding over the session, when the Speaker does not preside or has not designated any other Member as temporary presiding officer
  • Recommend to the Speaker appropriate policies and programs of action to improve the process of legislation and the quality of legislative measures
  • Act as the Speaker when so designated and in accordance with the designation, in case of the temporary incapacity or absence of the Speaker, until such time that the Speaker returns to office and resumes his/her work<br>In the event that the Speaker does not make such a designation, the Deputy Speaker most senior in age shall act as the Speaker only for purposes of ensuring the continued operations of the Parliament but shall not perform items (g) and (l) in Section 4 as well as all acts not in the ordinary course of business of the Parliament<br>The Deputy Speaker most senior in age shall assume the duties and powers of the Speaker as described in the previous paragraph in case of resignation, removal, death, and permanent incapacity of the Speaker, until such time that a new Speaker has been elected and qualified. He/she shall promptly inform the Chief Minister of the fact of resignation, removal, death, or permanent incapacity
  • Serve as ex officio member to all committees with a right to vote; and
  • Perform such other duties and functions as may be assigned or delegated to him/her from time to time by the Speaker

Hatimil Hassan initially served as the sole deputy speaker at the start of the first interim parliament, until more deputy speakers were added beginning November 25, 2020, upon the election of Omar Yasser Sema.

List of deputy speakers

Bangsamoro Transition Authority Parliament (since 2019)

Notes

References

Attribution:

See also