BARMM chief creates oil crisis task force
COTABATO CITY – Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua has formed the inter-agency Bangsamoro Oil Crisis Impact Task Force (BOCITF) to monitor the impact of the oil crisis in communities throughout the region.
Macacua said the effort seeks to hedge against profiteering and opportunistic traders as well as address the socioeconomic impact of rising fuel prices.
He said it is in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive through EO No. 110 that declared a state of national energy emergency in the country.
The move came after a series of cabinet meetings to assess the effects of the global oil crisis and identify mitigating measures.
READ: BARMM energy office assures public of ample fuel supplies
Citing a report from the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources and Energy (MENRE), Macacua said that gas station owners in the region have not taken advantage of the situation and are currently compliant with the prevailing market prices.
READ: No overpricing among BARMM gas dealers, regional energy body says
In a statement, MENRE said it has been monitoring daily all gas stations in the region’s five provinces and one Special Geographic Area to ensure consumers are not shortchanged.
“The monitoring forms part of MENRE’s oversight of the downstream oil and gas industry in the Bangsamoro region,” the agency said.
“It also supports the nationwide fuel price monitoring conducted by the Department of Energy to promote transparency, fair competition, and consumer protection,” it added.
“Prompt, coordinated, evidence-based, and time-bound actions are necessary to mitigate the socioeconomic impact of the oil crisis, stabilize essential public services, and protect vulnerable sectors,” Macacua said.
The BOCITF, chaired by Macacua, will be the central coordinating and policy-recommending body in assessing the crisis and proposing immediate, medium-term, and long-term solutions.
Among its functions are monitoring oil price movements, assessing their impact on transportation, food supply chains, and essential services, and recommending mitigating measures such as fuel conservation protocols, targeted subsidies, and social protection programs.
The body is also mandated to evaluate policy options for fuel importation and determine whether conditions warrant the declaration of a regional state of emergency./coa
