Church leaders have criticised the decision of Congress to postpone elections earlier scheduled on August 8 in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

“The law is not respected, and we, here in Mindanao, are not given the opportunity to choose our own leaders,” said Bishop Martin Jumoad of the Prelature of Isabela in Basilan province.

“We want the elections and not the imposition of leaders,” the prelate said.

Yesterday the Senate approved on third and final reading, with a vote of 13-7, a bill postponing the ARMM polls.

In March, the House of Representatives also approved a bill to postpone the elections to 2013 to coincide with mid-term national elections.

Auxiliary Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo of Cotabato said the principle of autonomy is “violated” with the Senate vote.

Bishop Bagaforo warned that the decision of the senators will fuel protests in the region. “I think the protest on that decision will continue,” he said.

Bishop Jumoad, meanwhile, said the postponement of the elections will result in renewed political tension in the region.

“The possibility of discontentment breeds lawlessness…. If the heat is too much, the pressure cannot be controlled,” the bishop said.

Oblates priest Eliseo Mercado Jr., chairman of the lobby group Kusog Mindanaw, said the decision to postpone the elections was a “lethal blow to the little autonomy and self-determination” of the Muslim region.

The priest said the delay of the elections is also a blow to the peace process because it can be taken by warring parties as a government signal that it is “business as usual” in Mindanao.

Father Mercado called on “stakeholders” in the autonomous Muslim region “to continue to fight for autonomy and self-determination..”

The Commission on Elections put on hold its preparations for the elections to wait for the Supreme Court to decide whether to uphold or overturn the decision of Congress.