Gov't to deal only with recognized MILF leadership amid recruitment reports

COTABATO CITY — The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) on Saturday, Nov. 14, thanked the leadership of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for clarifying that it has not authorized any recruitment for the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF).

The office also echoed the MILF's call for vigilance. It said the government "will recognize and engage only with the duly constituted and officially recognized leadership of the parties involved in the peace process, consistent with the established agreements and mechanisms."

"We appreciate the MILF leadership's clear and timely guidance to communities," said Secretary Mel Senen S. Sarmiento, presidential adviser on peace, reconciliation and unity and chair of the Government Implementing Peace Panel.

He also thanked the MILF leadership under Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim.

Sarmiento said OPAPRU would work with the MILF through the joint peace mechanisms "to address these reports and uphold our commitments under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB)."

OPAPRU urged the public, especially communities in the Bangsamoro, to report anyone claiming to recruit for the MILF or the BIAF to recognized MILF officials or the proper authorities. It also asked the public not to share unverified reports
In line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s directive, OPAPRU said it would continue working with the MILF to carry out the peace agreement, move forward the CAB's normalization track and protect the gains of peace in the Bangsamoro.

Under the CAB, the BIAF is undergoing decommissioning, a process meant to put its combatants and weapons "beyond use."

OPAPRU's statement came after the MILF Central Committee's official statement dated Nov. 11. In it, the front said no individual or group may represent it or recruit in its name without authority from its legitimate leadership. It said the MILF remains one organization with a recognized leadership, an organizational structure and a clear chain of command.

The MILF also said it is holding on to the President's statement that CAB programs will continue to be implemented.