Palace sees it as sign MILF, MNLF members heed BBM unity call
The composition of the new 80-member Bangsamoro Transition Authority is proof that the former warring members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have finally united under one Bangsamoro autonomous government.
“The fact that the unity between the MNLF and MILF happened under the present administration is an indication that President Marcos’ call for unity is being heeded by the former Moro rebel groups,” Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles said on Sunday.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday led the oath taking of the new members of the BTA, the interim government of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
The government has strived to harmonize the Bangsamoro peace agreements that include the 1976 Tripoli and the 1996 Final Peace Agreements as well as the 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
The participation of the MNLF under the leadership of Nur Misuari, according to presidential peace adviser Carlito Galvez, is a product of this convergence effort.
Among the new members of the BTA are Abdulkarim Misuari and Nurrheda Misuari, son and daughter of Misuari.
“The joining of the MNLF of Chair Nur Misuari with the MILF-led BTA is auspicious and heralds a significant step towards unity in the BARMM. It has been a long time since the MNLF and the MILF have split but under the Marcos administration, they are one in pushing for sustainable peace and development in the Bangsamoro,” Galvez said.
“With the joining of the MNLF and the MILF, and with the ‘balanced’ and equitable composition of the 39 government nominees, this is now no longer just the BTA of the old BARMM but the BTA of a ‘United BARMM,'” he added.
Marcos, in his speech, pledged his full support to BARMM as he recognized the important work that the interim government needs to complete in three years, from the enactment of basic laws and fiscal policy to the conduct of elections.
“We are given another chance because of the extension of the Transition Authority. We are given another chance, but we have three years, and three years is not a long time for this rather basic and fundamental and highly important pieces of legislation that have to be produced now by the Transition Authority,” he added.
He underscored the need to complete the work in 2025 as there will no longer be any extensions for the transition body.
“In 2025, we will no longer have any extensions to the authority, and we will conduct elections,” he said.
Republic Act No. 11593 reset the first regular elections in BARMM to have it synchronized with the 2025 national elections.
The law also extended the transition period and allowed the BTA to continue as the interim government in the region.
“It is important that we’re going to give a voice to all the stakeholders, to all the parties that are involved. But I’m confident because I have seen the list of the new appointees, the new members, and I believe that everyone has come on to be part of this process with a sincere desire to get BARMM back into the normal fold of life in the Philippines,” Marcos said.