Organization of Sangguniang Pampook in Reg 9 and 12

Batas Pambansa Blg. 20 is enacted by the Batasang Pambansa and is dated March 23, 1979.
Batas Pambansa Blg. 20 is approved on March 23, 1979.
The law takes effect upon approval under Section 17.
The law is organized as Sections 1 to 17.

The election of representatives to the Sangguniang Pampook of Regions Nine and Twelve shall be held on a date fixed by the President (Prime Minister), prioritizing the peace and order situation to ensure free, orderly and honest elections (Section 1).
The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) fixes the election period in accordance with Section 6, Article XII, paragraph (c) of the Constitution (Section 2).
The President (Prime Minister) fixes the campaign period, which shall not be more than forty-five days immediately preceding the election, excluding the day before and the day of the election (Section 2).
The filing of certificates of candidacy follows the rules of the 1978 Election Code for the filing process (Section 3).
The President (Prime Minister) determines the date for filing certificates of candidacy (Section 3).

Each Sangguniang Pampook in each region is composed of twenty-one (21) members (Section 4).
Seventeen (17) members are elected as follows:
- Region IX: Basilan (1), Sulu (3), Tawi-tawi (1), Zamboanga del Norte including Dipolog and Dapitan (4), Zamboanga del Sur including Pagadian and Zamboanga (8) (Section 4).
- Region XII: Lanao del Norte including Iligan (3), Lanao del Sur including Marawi (4), Maguindanao including Cotabato (4), North Cotabato (4), Sultan Kudarat (2) (Section 4).
One (1) sectoral representative each is included from among the region’s youth, agricultural workers, non-agricultural workers, and professionals (Section 4).
The President appoints an additional five (5) representatives whenever, in the President’s judgment, any other sector is not properly represented in the Sangguniang Pampook as a result of the elections (Section 4).
The seventeen (17) representatives are voted at large by the registered voters of their respective regions, and the candidates receiving the highest votes corresponding to the number of representatives allocated per province and its component cities are declared elected (Section 4).

After the election of the at-large members, and not later than twenty days thereafter, the kagawads representing youth, agricultural workers, non-agricultural workers and professionals in every Sangguniang Bayan or Panglungsod in each province in the region shall meet at a place and on a date designated by COMELEC (Section 4).
The sectoral selection is conducted subject to COMELEC supervision or its authorized representatives (Section 4).
A majority of the kagawads of each sector constitutes a quorum for electing the sectoral representatives (Section 4).
The candidate obtaining the highest number of votes in each sector is declared elected as sectoral representative (Section 4).

Pending an election to fill a vacancy in the Sangguniang Pampook, the vacancy is filled by the President (Prime Minister) upon recommendation of the Sangguniang Pampook (Section 5).
The appointee filling a vacancy must come from the same province or sector as the member being replaced (Section 5).
The 1978 Election Code rules on registration of voters apply to the elections under this Act (Section 6).
COMELEC may order voter registration in voting centers when necessity arises for the purpose of the election (Section 6).
Any such registration in voting centers is limited to a number of days fixed by COMELEC that shall not exceed three days, with the last day at least ten days before the date of the election (Section 6).
COMELEC may motu proprio or upon verified petition of any voter or election registrar, or of a duly registered political party or group, and after due notice and hearing, annul any book of voters not prepared per the 1978 Election Code or prepared through fraud, bribery, forgery, impersonation, intimidation, force, or any similar irregularity (Section 6).

The manner of election—including ballot preparation, canvass of votes, proclamation of winners, composition of Citizens Election Committees and Regional Boards of Canvassers, and rules on propaganda, expenditures, and related matters—shall be governed by the 1978 Election Code (Section 7).
If the number of public school teachers available for the Citizens Election Committees is insufficient, COMELEC may appoint private school teachers, members of the Katipunan ng mga Kabataang Kawani of the Civil Service Commission, ROTC cadets, or members of the barangay councils (Section 7).

The Sangguniang Pampook initially convenes upon call of the President (Prime Minister) within sixty days from the proclamation of a majority of the members of the Sangguniang Pampook (Section 8).
The Sangguniang Pampook adopts its own rules of proceedings by a majority vote of all its members (Section 9).
Pending adoption of such rules, the Rules of the Batasang Pambansa apply as far as practicable to the Sangguniang Pampook (Section 9).
The Lupong Tagapagpaganap ng Pook is composed of a Chairman and four Members appointed by the President (Prime Minister) on recommendation of the Sangguniang Pampook, and they may or may not be members of the Sangguniang Pampook (Section 10).

Each member of the Sangguniang Pampook receives an annual salary of Twenty-four Thousand Pesos (P24,000.00), chargeable against Sangguniang Pampook funds (Section 11).
For election expenses to hold representatives’ elections, an amount not exceeding Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) already appropriated in Batas Pambansa Blg. 1, Activity No. 1.1.3 may be used (Section 12).

COMELEC exercises the powers, jurisdiction, and duties conferred by the Constitution and law for the election of members of the National Assembly and elective provincial, municipal and city officials, as to the elections under this Act (Section 14).
The Southern Philippines Provisional Government is deemed abolished upon the convening of the Sangguniang Pampooks of Regions IX and XII (Section 15).
The Southern Philippines Provisional Government’s appropriation, properties, and assets are transferred in equal parts to the Sangguniang Pampooks of the two regions (Section 15).
The Provisional Government’s records and contracts are transferred and assumed by the region to which they may appropriately pertain (Section 15).
The provisions of Presidential Decree No. 1296, known and cited as the “1978 Election Code,” apply insofar as they are consistent with this Act (Section 13).

The provisions of Batas Pambansa Blg. 20 are separable, and if any provision is held unconstitutional, the remaining provisions remain valid (Section 16).