Talitay, officially the Municipality of Talitay (Maguindanaon: Ingud nu Talitay; Iranun: Inged a Talitay; Tagalog: Bayan ng Talitay), is a municipality in the province of Maguindanao del Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 17,463 people, making it the least populated municipality in the province.[3]
History
On July 1, 1996, during the fourth regular session of the second regional assembly of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, the regional legislature created the municipality of Talitay under Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act No. 52 which was approved in a plebescite on June 26, 1999. The town was carved out of the municipality of Talayan.[5] The ARMM law creating the municipality provides that its administrative center shall be established in barangay Talitay.
On April 15, 2008, during the third regular session of the fifth assembly of the regional legislature, it was then renamed into Sultan Sumagka through the enactment of Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act No. 228.[6][7] However no record of a plebiscite was held to affirm the renaming.
On March 22, 2021, the town was placed under a state of calamity due to family feud (rido) between the former mayor Montasir Sabal and Watamama-Amiril families, belonging to the MILF.[8] The former mayor offered his resignation as a result of prolonged fight between the two sides.[9] Currently, the Maguindanao provincial government installed a care-taker for the municipality, resulting in a controversy with the MILG, considering that by law of succession of the Local Government Code, Moner Sabal should be the successor.[10][11]
On June 17, 2021, the former mayor Montasir Sabal was killed while under police custody after his arrest on Port of Batangas.[12]