MILF always ready to help in seeing through the 2014 CAB as the future of the Bangsamoro depends on the historic accord’s full implementation — MILF PIP Chairman Mohagher M. Iqbal
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MANILA, April 22, 2026 (SDN) — Some civil society organizations (CSOs) in the Bangsamoro region had been advocating change at the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU).
On Tuesday, April 21, that change came through.
And change was from the top, as OPAPRU Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. stepped down from his post as presidential adviser on peace of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. He made clear his resignation took effect immediately.
The President lost no time in replacing Galvez, former chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and a veteran of the decades of conflict in Central Mindanao. He had been in government service for decades of his life.
His replacement: Mel Senen Sarmiento, 64, a civilian and a politician who has behind him a wealth of experience in government, including as a former congressman of the 1st District of Samar, Eastern Visayas. He’d been a mayor and vice mayor of Calbayog City, as a well as secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
Sarmiento’s being a civilian caught the attention of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) headed by Chairman Al-Haj Murad Ebrahim.
In fact the MILF issued a statement through its Peace Implementing Panel (PIP) Chairman Mohagher M. Iqbal celebrating the OPAPRU head’s appointment, saying implementing 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) is a work cut our for civilians.
“This is civilian work. It requires the kind of governance experience that Secretary Sarmiento brings — his understanding of municipal administration, regional development coordination, and national government-BARMM intergovernmental work. The Bangsamoro needs a partner at the national level who understands how institutions actually work, not simply how security operations function,” Iqbal, also MILF 1st vice chairman and chief negotiator.
Remember that the the policy-making body of the MILF, its Central Committee chaired by Ebrahim, had earlier suspended in July 2025 the decommissioning of 14,000 combatants and their weapons. Later, the former armed revolutionary organization also paused in March 2026 many aspects of its engagement with the Philippine Government (GPH) until a new GPH PIP chairman is appointed by the President, following the resignation of former Gen. Cesar Yano, Iqbal’s counterpart.
In his statement issued today, Wednesday, Iqbal cited the MILF placing much weight on the work the two peace partners (with the GPH) have already done.
“The Bangsamoro’s future depends on whether we finish what we started. The MILF stands ready to contribute fully to that work,” he assures.
Iqbal cited the MILF’s warm welcome for Sarmiento’s ascendancy at OPAPRU, apparently seeing a more conducive development for the continuing implementation of the CAB which the GPH and MILF signed on March 27, 2014.
“We recognize an opportunity in his appointment for the substantial fulfillment of the CAB and building the foundations of peace in the Bangsamoro,” he points out
As this developed, Iqbal did not miss extending the MILF’s “sincere gratitude to General Carlito G. Galvez for strength and success in whatever path he chooses ahead. General Galvez has been not merely an official, but a partner to the MILF in the critical years of implementation.”
The MILF PIP chairman described the former OPAPRU head’s tenure as having witnessed what Iqbal said was “historic achievements — the passage of the Bangsamoro Organic Law and beginning the work on decommissioning. We bid him well with respect and appreciation.”
On the other hand, the MILF voiced readiness to work with Sarmiento for the completion of the peace process. “We invite Secretary Sarmiento to engage the MILF leadership directly on these priorities. The work ahead requires partnership, not parallel processes. We have navigated decades of difficulty together. We can complete this final stretch with the same commitment to mutual respect and genuine problem-solving.”
He said the moment before is clear with the peace agreement already signed and the basic institutional architecture already in place.
“What remains is the harder, less visible work: completing normalization, building fiscal and governance capacity in the BARMM, ensuring that the Bangsamoro’s first parliamentary elections strengthen rather than fracture democratic legitimacy, and delivering development that reaches the communities most affected by decades of conflict,” the MILF PIP chairman emphasizes.
“BARMM” stands for Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) established in January 2019 by the 2018 Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), replacing and abolishing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). — EDD K. USMAN (/)