COTABATO CITY(June 6) — With campaigning expected to intensify ahead of the Sept. 14 Bangsamoro parliamentary elections, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) faction led by Muslimin Sema has ordered its members to refrain from posting or making derogatory remarks against rival candidates and political parties.
The directive came after complaints that some members affiliated with the MNLF and its political arm, the Bangsamoro Party (BAPA), had been criticizing political opponents on social media.
“We will gain nothing from such provocative activities because our Bangsamoro Party does not engage in any form of disparagement against other parties,” Sema, who also serves as BARMM’s Minister of Labor and Employment, said.
He reminded party members that BAPA was founded on respect, inclusivity and peaceful democratic participation.
“Our principles are to establish whatever can be agreed upon with respect,” Sema said. “BAPA promotes the unity of every tribe—Muslim, Christian and Indigenous Peoples—and no one in our party should engage in actions that undermine that mission.”
Sema said the directive applies to BAPA members across all five provinces and three cities of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), stressing that responsible political engagement is essential as the region prepares for its first regular parliamentary elections.
BAPA serves as the official political party of the MNLF faction under Sema’s leadership and is intended to advance the group’s political agenda through the democratic process rather than armed struggle.
Sema noted that the party reflects the MNLF faction’s transition following the historic Sept. 2, 1996 Final Peace Agreement, which eventually led to the movement splitting into different factions.
A former leader of the MNLF Executive Council of 15, Sema said his group has since focused on participating in the Bangsamoro Transition Authority and supporting the region’s shift from armed conflict to democratic governance.
The call for restraint comes as political parties intensify preparations for the landmark Sept. 14 polls, widely viewed as a critical milestone in the implementation of the Bangsamoro peace process and the region’s transition to a fully elected parliamentary government.
