[2] These consolidated certiorari, prohibition, mandamus and declaratory relief petitions sought the annulment of Commission on Elections "Resolution No.

178628, Perfecto Marquez, asked the Court "to order the COMELEC to conduct a special election for representative of the 'First District of Maguindanao with Cotabato City'".

3999, requesting the COMELEC to "clarify the status of Cotabato City in view of the conversion of the First District of Maguindanao into a regular province" under MMA Act No.

07-0407 on March 6, 2007 "maintaining the status quo with Cotabato City as part of Shariff Kabunsuan in the First Legislative District of Maguindanao."

7845 stating that Maguindanao's first legislative district is composed only of Cotabato City because of the enactment of MMA Act No.

Meanwhile, the Shariff Kabunsuan creation plebiscite was supervised and officiated by the COMELEC pursuant to Resolution No.

Sandra Sema questioned COMELEC Resolution 7902 which combined Shariff Kabunsuan and Cotabato City into a single legislative district during the 2007 Philippine general election.

Sema lost to incumbent Congress representative of the Shariff Kabunsuan and Cotabato district, Didagen Dilangalen.

[3] The Court was asked to rule on "whether Section 19, Article VI of RA 9054, delegating to the ARMM Regional Assembly the power to create provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays, is constitutional; and if in the affirmative, whether a province created by the ARMM Regional Assembly under MMA Act No.

On July 16, 2008, the Supreme Court of the Philippines's 33-page judgment (8-6) penned by Antonio Carpio annulled the "Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act No.

Justice Antonio Carpio opined: "We rule that (1) Section 19, Article VI of RA 9054 is unconstitutional insofar as it grants to the ARMM Regional Assembly the power to create provinces and cities; (2) MMA Act No.

The Court also declared unconstitutional the RLA’s power to create provinces and cities in the region but it did not pass upon the constitutionality of the creation of new municipalities and barangays.

Only Congress can create provinces and cities because the creation of provinces and cities necessarily includes the creation of legislative districts, a power only Congress can exercise under Section 5, Article VI of the Constitution and Section 3 of the Ordinance appended to the Constitution.

Moreover, the ARMM Regional Assembly cannot enact a law creating a national office like the office of a district representative of Congress because the legislative powers of the ARMM Regional Assembly operate only within its territorial jurisdiction as provided in Section 20, Article X of the Constitution.

The ruling also nullified the elections of the governor, vice governor and provincial board of Shariff Kabunsuan and the entire provincial bureaucracy is deemed scrapped as Shariff Kabunsuan reverts as integral part of Maguindanao.

[3] Uncertainty loomed about the legal fate of local elected provincial officials in Shariff Kabunsuan.

Rep. Didagen Dilangalen of Shariff Kabunsuan, meanwhile, said "there is a need to declare vacant the position of governor, vice-governor, and board members in new Maguindanao province.

Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) leaders on July 16, 2008, warned that the Court ruling would cause leadership problem and unemployment in the province, for it will cause some of the elected officials and government employees in Shariff Kabunsuan to lose their jobs.

Two crucial sources of income covered by Shariff Kabunsuan: the Parang seaport and Awang Airport in Datu Odin Sinsuat.