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BARMM will need more skilled workers: Murad

By Noel Punzalan

September 19, 2018, 8:39 pm

<p><strong>ULAMA SUPPORT.</strong> Moro Islamic Liberation Front chair Al Haj Murad (fourth from right) attends the 2nd Bangsamoro General Assembly of the Ulama held Tuesday (Sept. 18, 2018) at Alnor Convention Center in Cotabato City. The 1,000-strong Ulama group has signified its full support to the Bangsamoro Organic Law that would pave the way for the creation of the MILF-led Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao replacing the old Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao set up. <em><strong>(Photo courtesy of the MILF Media Group)</strong></em></p>

ULAMA SUPPORT. Moro Islamic Liberation Front chair Al Haj Murad (fourth from right) attends the 2nd Bangsamoro General Assembly of the Ulama held Tuesday (Sept. 18, 2018) at Alnor Convention Center in Cotabato City. The 1,000-strong Ulama group has signified its full support to the Bangsamoro Organic Law that would pave the way for the creation of the MILF-led Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao replacing the old Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao set up. (Photo courtesy of the MILF Media Group)

COTABATO CITY -- The incoming Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) that will replace the decades-old Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will need more workers than ever to ensure its success, both in the political and social spheres.

This was expressed by Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on the sidelines of the 2nd Bangsamoro General Assembly of the Ulama, attended by over 1,000 “Ulama” (Islamic scholars) from all over the country, at Alnor Convention Center here Tuesday.

“We need more people who know how to run agencies of the new, expanded regional government,” Murad said referring to the MILF-led BARMM political entity.

He added: “With due respect to the mujahideen (Islamic guerrilla fighters), frankly I would like to tell you that not all of us would be accommodated to work with the government.”

Murad said many workers in the current ARMM have undergone extensive training, both here and aboard, in running the regional government.

“We need such skilled workers to run a regional government,” he stressed. “When we talk of guerrilla warfare, you (mujahedeen) have that skill to fight. However, running a (regional) government is a different field. It is very much different from armed struggle,” the MILF chief said.

Murad said once the BARMM government is in place, special programs under the normalization process would be lined up for the many former MILF rebels to improve their skills in the field of agriculture, big industries, business, and commerce, among others.

“Rest assured, the mujahideen will not be left behind because this is all for you, for us Bangsamoro people,” he said.

The MILF has an estimated 7,000 former armed guerrillas.

Murad’s latest pronouncement has somehow allayed the fear of massive displacement of some 6,000 ARMM workers once the BARMM starts go in operation.

“We need the help of everybody to achieve our aspiration,” he said.

On July 27, President Rodrigo Duterte signed the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), which would pave the way for the creation of the BARMM.

The BOL, now officially called the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (OLBARMM), is the result of decades-long peace negotiations between the national government and MILF organization.

A plebiscite is slated for the BOL on January 2019, where areas under the current ARMM -- the cities of Marawi and Lamitan, and the provinces of Maguindanao, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Basilan and Lanao del Sur -- are proposed for inclusion to the BARMM.

Other BARMM proposed areas are the cities of Cotabato and Isabela in Basilan; six municipalities in Lanao del Norte and 39 villages in three North Cotabato towns.

The Ulama, for its part, said it fully supports the BOL. (PNA)

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