MILF chief pushed to rule ‘rainbow coalition’

COTABATO CITY — Some 1,500 supporters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) gathered at the city plaza here on Thursday to air their call for the elected Bangsamoro parties and district and sectoral representatives to unite in a “rainbow coalition” headed by the erstwhile revolutionary group’s leader, Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim.

The rally was led by the religious sector of the MILF and its political arm, the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP).

A similar gathering was held in Manila on Thursday to press President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to support a coalition led by Ebrahim in the formation of the first regular Bangsamoro government.

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At the rally at the city plaza here, Sheikh Albani Alimnor, one of the MILF ulama (religious scholars), called on the president to respect the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) “by having a parliament headed by the MILF” through the rainbow coalition.

The CAB, the peace agreement signed by the MILF with the government in 2014, paved the way for the creation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2019, following the ratification of Republic Act No. 11054, or the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).

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“We urge [Mr. Marcos] to convene the rainbow coalition to be composed of all political parties so that the BARMM parliament will be led by the MILF as agreed upon and stated in the Bangsamoro Organic Law,” Alimnor said in his speech.

The call came despite the earlier declaration by Presidential Peace Adviser Mel Senen Sarmiento that the national government would not interfere in the selection of the chief minister by the first regular Bangsamoro parliament, whose term will stretch from Oct. 30 this year until June 30, 2031.

Earlier, the Bangsamoro Federalist Party (BFP), which earned 31 of 80 parliament seats, had claimed it had gathered the support of at least 46 incoming members of parliament to form the majority in the regional legislature following coalition arrangements with other political parties that garnered seats during the Sept. 14 elections.

‘Off-limits’

Mr. Marcos himself had assured the national government’s “off-limits” stance after the BFP announced the development.

On Oct. 14, the President said: “Following the announcement of a 46-member majority coalition, I reiterate the national government’s respect for Bangsamoro autonomy and its democratic institutions. We respect Parliament’s authority to determine its leadership in accordance with the Bangsamoro Organic Law. We look forward to working with the government formally constituted by Parliament in support of peace, stability, and inclusive development.”

Mohagher Iqbal, chair of the MILF Peace Implementing Panel, had welcomed Mr. Marcos’ stance.

Still, rally speakers called on the President to convene the coalition so Ebrahim would be elected chief minister. Ebrahim served as BARMM interim chief minister for six years, starting in 2019 when the interim regional government was created.

Rally participants also displayed tarpaulins and streamers urging all elected parties and district and sectoral representatives to elect Ebrahim as the BARMM head.

Alimnor stressed that it is only Ebrahim, the Bangsamoro “amirul mujahideen” (leader of the Bangsamoro struggle), “who can unite all the Bangsamoro and ensure that the provisions of the peace agreement are implemented in letter and spirit.”

Thursday’s rally came after elected parliament members of the UBJP took their oaths on Wednesday inside the Bangsamoro Government Center here.

Led by Ebrahim and Iqbal, the UBJP parliament members-elect took their “Oath of Moral Governance” before Bangsamoro Wali Sheikh Muslim Guiamaden, the regional government’s ceremonial head.

They then all took their oath of office before Judge Kasan K. Abdulrakman, executive judge of the Regional Trial Court Branch 27 in Cotabato City. /mr