The Bangsamoro Parliament has officially elected Member of Parliament (MP) Mohammad Shuaib Yacob as its new Speaker, succeeding the late Pangalian Balindong, who passed away on October 2.
During its session on Tuesday afternoon, the Parliament—presided over by Bangsamoro Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua—unanimously voted for Yacob to assume the post.
Balindong, who had served as Speaker since the Parliament’s inauguration in 2019, died due to illness earlier this month.
A total of 67 members attended the special session called by Chief Minister Macacua, and all voted in favor of Yacob, with no objections or abstentions recorded.
Aside from being an MP, Yacob currently serves as the Senior Minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), overseeing the daily operations of the regional bureaucracy.
He previously headed the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Aquatic Resources (MAFAR) before being appointed to his current role.
Yacob has been a member of the Bangsamoro Parliament since 2019 and once served as the executive director of the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA), the development arm of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
A Shari’ah Law scholar, Yacob also holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree.