Palace backs ex-Moro rebs vs BARMM clans

COTABATO CITY, BARMM, Philippines — To ensure continuity in the leadership of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), the alliance of erstwhile rebel groups Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) has earned the backing of Malacañang in their fight against entrenched political clans in the region.

Speaking to reporters via Zoom on Wednesday, BARMM Interim Chief Minister Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim admitted that the MILF’s political party, the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP) which he heads, got the help of President Marcos’ officials in coming up with viable candidates for key posts in Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur provinces.

Ebrahim said that a meeting was held on Oct. 6 in Davao City among local politicians of the two provinces in order to “build consensus” on candidates that they would support in next year’s midterm elections.

READ: BARMM parliamentary polls will be inclusive – Pendatun

Apart from key officials of UBJP, Ebrahim said the meeting, which ended at 1 a.m. on Oct. 7, was attended by South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo, president of Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), which carried Marcos’ 2022 candidacy, and Special Assistant to the President Antonio Lagdameo.

There, the officials “fixed” the local slates for both provinces, in line with the President’s supposed instruction to ensure that the UBJP emerges victorious in next year’s polls, especially in the first-ever balloting for those who will compose the 80-member parliament.

Davao meeting

After the long consensus-building exercise, the meeting agreed to field Sultan Kudarat Mayor Datu Tucao Mastura for governor of Maguindanao del Norte with outgoing Datu Blah Sinsuat Mayor Marshall Sinsuat as his running mate.

The race for the lone congressional seat will be a “free zone” for incumbent Rep. Dimple Mastura and former Rep. Bai Sandra Sema, wife of BARMM Labor Minister Muslimin Sema, who heads a large faction of the MNLF and chair of the Bangsamoro Party, which is in alliance with UBJP.

In Maguindanao del Sur, they pushed for former Talayan Mayor Datu Ali Midtimbang for governor and Sheikh Hisham Khalifa Nando, son of the late Bangsamoro Wali Sheikh Khalifa Nando, as his running mate, while former Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu will gun for the lone congressional seat.

The “consensus candidates” in Maguindanao del Norte will face the team of former Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) Director General Suharto Mangudadatu and former Maguindanao Vice Gov. Bai Ainee Sinsuat.

In Maguindanao del Sur, the candidates backed by the MILF and MNLF will face the tandem of acting Gov. Bai Mariam Mangudadatu and Mamasapano Vice Mayor Benzar Ampatuan, with Rep. Mohamad Paglas Sr. seeking reelection.

The former Tesda chief earlier forged what was then touted as a formidable alliance of the major clans in Maguindanao that would have ensured their stroll to political power in both provinces in 2025.

Several days earlier, Mayor Mastura and Midtimbang were present when Suharto Mangudadatu, who also used to be governor of nearby Sultan Kudarat province, declared his candidacy for Maguindanao del Norte governor.

Impact

But the alliance has now crumbled, with several clan leaders closing ranks with the former revolutionaries who had the strong backing of the country’s top leadership.

With the recent turn of events, Mangudadatu’s son, Sultan Kudarat Gov. Datu Pax Ali Mangudadatu, blasted Lagdameo’s meddling in local politics that he said had disrupted the relations among the political families in the region.

But according to Ebrahim, the long-term impact of these political moves is continuity in BARMM leadership and peace gains.

“Malacañang is still very interested to have the MILF continue to rule the BARMM. Even the President himself, at one time, pronounced that we should stay in the BARMM (leadership) so that (we) are able to continue what (we) have started,” Ebrahim said. “Maybe other politicians are jealous about this.”

Maguindanao, which is traditionally ruled by dynastic clans, is the heartland of the MILF’s secessionist struggle, long after it split from the MNLF in 1977.