‘New MNLF leader’ supports Bangsamoro pact between govt, MILF

(Updated 6:25 p.m.) With Nur Misuari supposedly out, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) — now under a new leader — has thrown its support behind the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity, seen as a significant step in bringing peace to war-torn Mindanao.
 

Datu HJ. Abul Khayr Alonto, the new MNLF chairman, on Monday publicly expressed his group's support for the peace initiatives between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), days before the two parties are expected to sign the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB).

Alonto said they will campaign for Bangsamoro basic law, which will have to be approved through a plebiscite.

“We are supporting the creation Bangsamoro political entity,” Alonto said in a news forum in Manila. “We are supporting this initiative by having the approval of the Basic Law. It  will be the people who will decide at the end of the day through a plebiscite.”

Alonto said he is now the new head of MNLF after the ouster of Misuari on February 10. He claimed to have the support of 35 of the 39 surviving members of the original MNLF Central Committee. He also said he has the support of most MNLF members, although he refused to say the exact number of their forces.

“All elements in Mindanao right now are in solidarity for the success of this peace process. Kaya nga natanggal si Nur Misuari ay dahil hindi siya sang-ayon sa peace process na ito,” Alonto said.

Zamboanga siege

Misuari, a former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, has been in hiding after the government accused him of masterminding the MNLF attack on Zamboanga City last year.

He said they tried to convince Misuari to cooperate and support the peace process but the latter did not heed them.

“He responded with [the] siege of Zamboanga City, we cannot tolerate this and our people cannot forgive him for this,” Alonto said of Misuari, as he called on all their brothers in Mindanao—“including the faction of Misuari and all factions within that faction”—to return to their fold.

“The Central Committee leadership is calling you to report to your mother unit. Tayo ay magkaisa, tulungan natin ang MILF na ang giyera ay matapos na. Ito ay ating responsibilidad sa ating mga anak,” he said.

He added that there will be no repeat of a situation like the Zamboanga siege. 

"Our people will protect their respective communities from anyone that will harm and threaten the security of their community," he said.

He said, however,  that that does not mean the MNLF will readily go to war.

"The official position of Central Committee is whatever the issue, it will be resolved in a peaceful, non-violent, Islamic, democratic process," said Alonto.?

Key to the future

Alonto also said he believes the establishment of a Bangsamoro entity would be a key to the future of Mindanao, which has suffered from years of armed conflict between government troops and Moro rebels.

“Kung walang giyera ay walang corruption. The greater budget will go to education, healthcare and shelter," Alonto said, adding they should seize the opportunity brought by President Benigno Aquino III's determination to have peace in Mindanao.

The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro is the final peace agreement between the GPH and MILF. It will serve as basis for the drafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

The BBL, once passed by Congress and upheld in a plebiscite in the proposed core territory, will formalize the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity that will enjoy an enhanced political and fiscal autonomy.

Chief government negotiator with the MILF Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said the success of the CAB will help realize the hopes of ordinary Mindanaoans to lead peaceful lives, enjoy equal opportunities, send their children to schools, have decent jobs, and keep away from criminal activities.

“This is the goal of the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity – replace the institution that does not live up to the expectations for a good and democratic government. We are putting all the elements in place. The institutional designs of this (Bangsamoro) government will be more representative and accountable,” Coronel-Ferrer said in a radio interview Sunday.

The panel chair also stressed that lasting peace and development in Mindanao will also benefit the entire Philippines.

“A bomb that explodes in Mindanao affects the entire country. Economic activity is disrupted, business confidence is decreased, travel is restricted. One incident can easily affect the economy of the country,” she said.?

Cha-cha OK

Alonto also supports Charter amendments if it is needed for the peace in Mindanao. “If it requires to go beyond the parameters of Constitution to put an end to the war in Mindanao, tumulong tayo  at kausapin ang Kongreso na gawin ito," he said.

The Palace as well as the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process have previously said the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity will be within the bounds of the 1987 Constitution.

The CAB is set to be signed in three days, according to a press release from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process.

Aside from being one of the founding members of MNLF, Alonto also served as the first interim head of the Regional Autonomous Government established under then President Ferdinand Marcos. He was later first speaker of the Regional Legislative Assembly.

He is also a former vice mayor of Marawi City.

Alonto was appointed Philippine Ambassador to Nigeria in 1994 but he chose to work in the Philippines instead, according to a book “The Maranaws: Dwellers of the Lake” published in 1997. It also said that Alonto was a board member in the National Steel Corporation. — KBK/JDS, GMA News