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MANILA, June 9, 2026 (SDN) — Surely, this will warm the heart of every Maguindanaon in the Bangsamoro region! Or anywhere else.
For sometime, SDN Online has been advocating the appointment of qualified members of the Maguindanaon ethnic community to the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) as commissioners as Maguindanaon leaders and civilians have been lamenting their lack of representation.
Yes, at last. Warms the heart, truly! If it does not warm your heart, then you must be someone who possesses a heart of stone.
It’s because, it’s nice to reiterate, because it was a long time coming, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., finally, appointed two Maguindanaons to join five other commissioners of the NCMF to bring the current total to seven. But two more to complete the mandated 9 commissioners, the Commission being a collegial body.
The two lucky new appointees, Hadji Usop “Joe” Zaide Kasan and Atty. Syed Kamal Reza L. Ampatuan. Kasan is a former director of the Bureau of Pilgrimage and Endowment (BPE) of the defunct Office on Muslim Affairs (OMA), while Ampatuan is a new lawyer and son of Department of Agriculture (DA) Undersecretary for Bangsamoro Concerns Zamzamin L. Ampatuan, former executive director of OMA.
On Monday morning, June 9, NCMF Secretary Sabuddin N. Abdurahim, also a commissioner, administered the oath taking of the two new commissioners from Maguindanao del Sur, separately, who were accompanied by their love ones and friends.
Earlier, the President appointed two commissioners from Region 9 (Western Mindanao) and two from the Lanao provinces.
In a statement, the NCMF cited the significance of the new appointees’ swearing in and joining the Commission.
“The occasion marks a significant milestone in further strengthening the leadership of the Commission and advancing its mandate to promote and protect the welfare, rights, and interests of Muslim Filipinos throughout the country. As Commissioner, Kasan assumes an important role in supporting the NCMF’s programs and initiatives aimed at fostering inclusive development, social cohesion, and meaningful community engagement.”
Maguindanao observers counting on Commissioners Kasan and Ampatuan to do right by their brothers and sisters
In like manner, as Commissioner for the Youth Sector, the young Ampatuan “is entrusted with the vital responsibility of representing and advocating for the aspirations and concerns of the Muslim youth across the country,” the NCMF said.
Observers from the Maguindanaon community who welcomed the appointments of Commissioners Kasan and Ampatuan earnestly hope the two NCMF officials will work for the welfare of their fellow tribal brothers and sisters and include among their priorities the increase of qualified Maguindanaons in the Commission as new employees, and the promotion of those who are already insiders.
Presently, as the observers ruefully lamented, there are only a handful Maguindanaon employees in the NCMF Central Office and regional offices (except in Cotabato City, perhaps).
They noted that “since 2010 when the NCMF was established through Republic Act No. 9997, there has never been a Maguindanaon appointed as secretary and head of the NCMF, thus, they are not priorities in new appointments and promotions.”
One of the keen observers of goings-on in the NCMF told SDN Online that Commissioners Kasan and Ampatuan have in their shoulders the welfare of their fellow Muslims across the country, especially in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Meanwhile, it was learned that Minister Jordan Bayam of the Ministry of the Interior and Local Government (BARMM) has been actively pushing for the appointment of Maguindanaon as commissioner of the NCMF.
The MILF is one of the 15 primary ministries of the Bangsamoro Government. — EDD K. USMAN (✓)