“I don’t think there is any escalation, the MILF would just hold still until the President, or the government negotiating panel, would be authorized to talk to them.”

— Cardinal Orlando B. Quevedo, OMI

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DAVAO CITY, August 22, 2025 (SDN) — Cardinal Orlando B. Quevedo, OMI, lead of the Friends of Peace (FOP), has noted in an exclusive interview with SDN – SciTech and Digital News that the Bangsamoro peace process is now on hold.

He said this is “because of the problem on decommissioning and the complaint of the MILF chair, Murad, Chair Murad Ebrahim, that not enough of the wealth sharing is given to the combatants, the livelihood projects, and the rehabilitation, not enough of the finances that are promised is being given, and the third is the problem of transitional justice not being discussed yet.”

The Catholic leader shared his observations with SDN on the status of the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) at the sidelines of the FOP’s Titayan 2 event that revolved around the theme Bridging to Sustain Peace in the Bangsamoro participated by many peace advocates from various parts of the country.

In citing “problem”, Cardinal apparently was referring to the decision of the MILF Central Committee chaired by Ebrahim that suspended on a temporary basis the fourth and final phase of the decommissioning process for 14,000 combatants and 2,450 weapons.

The suspension order which the group decided in a meeting a Camp Darapanan, Crossing Simuay, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao del Norte, was followed by the MILF Memorandum No. 037 signed by Ebrahim dated August 16, 2025, that prohibits the group’s Front and Base Commanders, Deputy Commanders, and heads of line agencies, etc.

Titayan 2 came at a time when the peace process is on an impasse because of the twin MILF decisions and that as a result tensions have emerged in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). The Bangsamoro region is comprised of the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, and Tawi-Tawi; the cities of Cotabato, Lamitan, and Marawi; and the Special Geographic Area (SGA) made up of 63 barangays (villages) which are now eight separate municipalities.

In the interview, Quevedo cited the urgency of addressing the situation on the ground. “It’s very important that the two panels will be discussing this (problem).”

He adds: “So, everything is in hold now, particularly on these two points, decommissioning and the sharing of wealth, Annex on Sharing of Wealth.”

The FOP and six other organizations were involved in staging Titayan’s second iteration on August 18 to 20 with funding assistance from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and The Asia Foundation (TAP).

Quevedo does not see the situation on the ground escalating

“I’m hoping that at the end of this discussion, conversations of Titayan 2, the participants will agree to send a message to President (Ferdinand R.) Marcos (Jr.) that he instructs his panel, and irrevocably resigned (GPH Peace Implementing Panel Chair Cesar) Yano, whoever succeeds him should be instructed by President Marcos to meet with the negotiating panel of the MILF, particularly Mohagher Iqbal, to trace out this problem of decommissioning, so that the peace process can continue,” said Quevedo in the interview on the sidelines of the event’s second day.

“And I hope that Titayan 2 will come out with that resolution which somebody could bring to the President,” he said. Quevedo revealed at the forum that the President is his relative through Marcos, Jr.’s mother.

Asked if it would involve the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU), he replied in the negative.

“That’s not OPAPRU, it will be (the) President himself, talking with his negotiating panel, the successor of Yano. OPAPRU will be put on the side muna (for the meantime).

“And these two, Iqbal and the negotiating panel of the MILF, would like to continue the conversation, especially he said in Kuala Lumpur, soon. And that’s where the problem could be traced out,” the Catholic leader pointed out.

In the same interview, he said he did not think the situation on the ground would escalate, saying “the MILF would just hold still until the President, or the government negotiating panel, would be authorized to talk to them.”

International Crisis Group (ICG) Senior Analyst Georgij Engelbrecht told SDN separately earlier of the need for the national government to come into the picture.

“Ideally, the Central Government and the MILF need to convene a meeting on the level of the panels as soon as possible, perhaps even before October. But at the same time, a top-level dialogue is needed to keep the President in the loop,” Engelbrect suggested. “It is also for CSOs (civil society organizations) to step up and not only provide general rhetorical support but also concrete solutions and policy ideas.”

The ICG country head in the Philippines also noted the Bangsamoro Transition Authority’s (BTA) crucial role, saying the BTA needs to act immediately.

Whatever, Engelbrecht meant in mentioning the BTA, the Parliament had already passed on third and final reading BTA Bill No. 351 on the redistricting of the seven district seats left by the province of Sulu after it was removed by the Supreme Court in September 2024 from the Bangsamoro region.

As a result, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) suspended on Wednesday the printing of ballots from Tawi-Tawi and the SGA after learning of the bill’s passage. BTA Bill No. 351 now awaits the signature, first by Parliament Speaker Ali Pangalian Balindong and, second, BARMM interim Chief Minister Abdulraof A. Macacua.

In his Welcome Remarks for Titayan 2, Quevedo described the Bangsamoro peace process as being “at a crossroads.”

He said that tensions are threatening to derail crucial dimensions of the peace process, particularly the decommissioning of the forces of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (MILF-BIAF), wealth sharing, and transitional justice.

The FOP lead mentioned the activities’ general task, such as:

• To discover where the peace process is now;
• To share observations on the problems, with special attention to women, youth, and the Indigenous Peoples;
• To explore the main problems that beset the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA);
• To find ways by which we can assist towards a just, fair, and transparent BARMM elections; and
• To decide on ways by which the Friends of Peace can assist in moving the peace process forward.

The FOP held the first Titayan (bridge in Maguindanaon dialect) in 2016. — EDD K.U. (√)

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