MILF chief is BARM interim chief minister

MANILA, Philippines — As expected, President Rodrigo Duterte named and swore in Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, the chief of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) as the interim Chief Minister of the upcoming new political entity in southern Philippines, online news organizations reported Friday.Murad will lead the newly formed Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the 80-member Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) composed of government and MILF recommendees.The BTA will run the affairs of the regional government based in Cotabato City until 2022 when regular members shall have been elected.The Office of the Presidenti Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) said some incumbent ARMM officials will also form part of the BTA. It will be the realization of all our dreams and end long decades of armed struggle that hindered the growth of the region and I also consider my home, Duterte said said in his speech after swearing BTA members.Duterte said the newly-established BARMM is a realization of everyone's dream to end the armed struggle in Mindanao. The successful ratification of this Organic Law will enable us to create an environment that will be conducive to the peaceful coexistence between the Muslims, Christians, Lumads, and all tribes of this planet as indigenous peoples and settlers who will consider Mindanao as their home, Duterte said in his speech during the ceremonial confirmation of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) plebiscite canvass results and oath-taking ceremony of the members of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) at Malacañang Palace.Duterte assured various stakeholders that his administration will ensure good governance in BARMM. Your courage and determination will never be put to waste. I guarantee that you and this administration will use all the resources within its disposal to ensure better governance and inclusive political empowerment in this new Bangsamoro region, he said.The President recalled the hardships of the peace process and expressed hope for permanent peaceful co-existence with the ratification of the BOL. We would like to see an end of the violence that has rocked Mindanao and have cost so many lives for nothing. If there is any problem at all or in the future, let me assure you that for the remaining years of my work as a government work here, here in this building, I assure you, Insha’Allah, I will always do what the law says and what is yours, to what extent that we can give you, not only comfort but happiness to the Muslims of Mindanao, he said.Duterte challenged the 80 newly-appointed members of the BTA to fulfill a better future for the people of BARMM by committing to the values of the rule of law, good governance, and democracy. Always embody the dreams and aspirations of the great men and women who came before you and fought for the recognition of your right to determine your future, he told them.The President announced the appointment of Moro Islamic Liberation Front Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim as Interim Chief Minister of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority.The BOL, considered as one of Duterte’s biggest legislative achievements, is expected to give the Moro people the basic legal tools to chart their own destiny within the country’s Constitutional framework.(PNA)