Bangsamoro chief welcomes peace rally staged by MILF supporters

COTABATO CITY — Bangsamoro Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua on Thursday described the peace rally organized by Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) supporters and its political party as a “healthy sign of democracy.”

“As long as it is peaceful and participants do not use profane language, that’s okay with me,” Macacua told reporters after visiting the towns of Mamasapano and Sultan sa Barongis in Maguindanao del Sur.

Macacua and the MILF Central Committee, chaired by Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim, had a falling out after the former was installed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as interim chief minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), replacing Ebrahim last year.

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The MILF Central Committee said it did not endorse Macacua to replace Ebrahim.

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The front suspended Macacua as chief of staff of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, the MILF’s armed wing, indefinitely effective early this month.

READ: MILF suspends BARMM chief minister Macacua as military chief

Sheikh Abdulhadie Gumander, spokesperson for rally organizer Recover BARMM Now, said in a news conference that, based on “official registration records,” around 400,000 people joined the peace rally.

However, Colonel Jibin Bongcayao, director of the Cotabato City Police Office, estimated the crowd at between 50,000 and 80,000 participants.

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Former Cotabato City Mayor Cynthia Guiani-Sayadi defended the demonstrators, saying they were not paid hacks but legitimate Bangsamoro constituents who had sacrificed to achieve peace in their homeland.

“Their cry is simple — respect the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro and fully implement the peace agreement,” said Sayadi.

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In 2019, Sayadi, then the mayor, campaigned against the ratification of Republic Act 11054, or the Bangsamoro Organic Law, the enabling law for the establishment of the BARMM, in the city. /mcm

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