Starting Point
Member of Parliament (MP) Attorney Raissa H. Jajurie originates from Jolo, Sulu. She completed her degree in Political Science at Ateneo de Manila and her Law Degree at the University of the Philippines.
She serves as a Member of the Bangsamoro Parliament, nominated by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Additionally, she holds the position of Deputy Floor Leader and chairs the Committee on Local Government.
In Parliament, she simultaneously serves as the Minister of Social Services and Development and as the Chairperson of the Social Development Committee under the Bangsamoro Economic Development Council (BEDC). She represented the government in defending cabinet bills, including the Bangsamoro Administrative, Civil Service, Electoral, and Local Governance Codes, as well as the Bangsamoro Attorney-General’s Office, Socio-Economic Development Planning System, Women Commission, and the Rights of IDPs. She also spearheaded the enactment of a law that declared the eight municipalities that composed the Special Geographic Area of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). As the principal author, she defended Approved Resolution (AR) No. 48 supporting the Bangsamoro Children’s Declaration and AR No. 150, commending the Senate for Senate Bill No. 2214 resetting the first regular elections in BARMM.
Peace Journey
MP Jajurie became the first female member of the MILF delegation to participate in negotiations with the Government of the Philippines for peace in Bangsamoro in 2011. She later joined the legal team that facilitated the preparation of the Framework Agreement on Bangsamoro in 2012 and the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro, signed in 2014. Currently, she is an alternate member of the MILF Peace Implementing Panel.
In 2013, MP Jajurie was appointed to the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) by the President after being nominated by the MILF. As chair of the Committee on Fiscal Autonomy, she drafted provisions on taxation, revenue generation, wealth sharing, the economy, and patrimony. She was also appointed to the second BTC in 2017.
Since 2019, as a Member of Parliament, she has served as Chairperson of the Sub-Committee on Finance, Budget, and Management during five consecutive years of budget deliberations. She is also the Chairperson of the Panel conducting public consultations for the Bangsamoro Administrative Code, Civil Service Code, and Sustainable Development Board Act.
In her advocacy work, she has taken on various roles at the Sentro ng Alternatibong Lingap Panligal (SALIGAN), an alternative law group dedicated to empowering marginalised sectors and communities. Her advocacy for human rights includes work with labour groups, Muslim women, Moro lawyers, and Moro communities. She is a co-founder of Nisa Ul-Haqq fi Bangsamoro (Women for Justice in the Bangsamoro), an organisation based in Zamboanga City that seeks to improve the lives of grassroots women through training, community dialogue, research, and policy advocacy.
Success Stories
She received the 2024 Inquirer Women of Power award from the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the 2024 Government Service Award from Ateneo de Manila University’s Traditional University Awards.