CAMP DARAPANAN, Maguindanao — The military arm of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said it will help ensure a peaceful and orderly Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections but will not actively participate in the electoral process, an MILF official on Sunday said.
Von Al Haq, the spokesperson of the MILF’s Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF), said the MILF prohibits its armed members to get involved in the country’s electoral process as a matter of policy.
“We are not allowed to directly or indirectly participate in the electoral process,” Al Haq said.
He explained that indirect participation includes acting as security escorts of candidates, lending firearms and other weapons, and other acts that would provide support to any candidate and political parties.
Al Haq also said that the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) of both the MILF and government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on May 4 to maintain the “peace on the ground” during the election period.
Under the MOU, both parties agreed that the police and military could enter MILF-controlled areas during the election period provided that proper coordination is observed.
“We know that they will enter, pass by, or bring ballots. And that was agreed on by both parties. We do not see it as a problem,” Al Haq said in a statement.
“BIAF would provide help to the AFP and PNP only if required,” he said.
The guidelines of the barangay election agreement between the government and MILF include mechanisms on the mobility of people and forces.
“The main routes, water, and land usually used by the MILF troops during movements and activities shall be left open. Provided, however, that MILF movements are properly coordinated earlier with the GPH CCCH and the existing ceasefire mechanisms,” the MOU stated.
The MOU also said that MILF “shall refrain from consolidating its forces for any purpose including peace gatherings from the time the election paraphernalia are deployed until the election has been completed except at Camp Darapanan in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, Camp Bushra in Lanao del Sur, and in urban centers, when necessary, and in coordination with the GPH CCCH.”
Armed MILF elements are also prohibited from going near polling centers and precincts, displaying their firearms and uniforms along routes leading to the areas where electoral activities are ongoing, it added.
BIAF members violating this memorandum will be sanctioned according to the MILF policies as determined by the disciplinary board. (Edwin Fernandez/PNA)
