By Perfecto T. Raymundo, Jr.
PASIG CITY — The One Bangsamoro Movement (1BANGSA) advocacy was launched on Wednesday (Dec. 4) at the Kapihan sa Metro East Media Forum organized by the PaMaMariSan-Rizal Press Corps supported by the Pinoy Ako advocacy group for the unity of 10 million Filipino Muslims.
In the media soft launching, Maulana “Alan” A. Balangi, National President of 1BANGSA, Inc., a federation type of organizations composed of several Muslim organizations inside and outside of the BARMM (Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao).
Balangi was pushing for peace talks and back to the negotiating table for peace since 2008, when the signing of the MOA-AD did not materialize, the youth and the other Muslim organizations have formed the 1BANGSA.
Comprehensive Agreement for the Bangsamoro for the peace negotiation but it was negated by the Mamasapano incident in 2015.
The Bangsamoro Transition Commission was Republic Act No. 11054 created the new concrete Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao which is now in the “transition process”.
The 1BANGSA aims to unify the BARMM with 3 million voters and outside of BARMM there are more than 3 million voters.
“1BANGSA, 1Vote2025” aims to vote for national candidates with only true support for the Bangsamoro people and for the peace process.
1BANGSA is dismayed with the exclusion of Sulu province from the BARMM because it will destroy the historical significance of BARMM.
The significance of Islam also originated in the BaSulTa (Basilan/Sulu/Tawi-Tawi).
It was very saddening for the IBANGSA that the province of Sulu was excluded from the BARMM, which the Supreme Court in its ruling said that it is “final and executory’.
They are calling for the inclusion again of the Sulu province in the territorial jurisdiction of BARMM.
Actually, Sulu was included in the BARMM. Sulu voted for the “No” votes, hence, the SC ruled to exclude Sulu from the BARMM.
However, 1BANGSA believes that the historical unity of the BARMM started in Sulu province and with its recent exclusion from BARMM, it would destroy the historical significance of BARMM.
The 1BANGSA is an advocacy group that has been campaigning in the entire Philippines. They conduct regional summits.
Thousands of Bangsamoro, together with 350 leaders of Muslim communities, will participate in the National Summit to endorse candidates in the May 12, 2025 national and local elections, who will undergo strict scrutiny.
“If there is ‘Solid North’ in Luzon, ‘One Cebu’ in Visayas, we also have ‘One Bangsamoro’ in Mindanao,” Balangi said.
“The 1BANGSA, for the past 20 years (almost two decades), has not approached any politician from BARMM to the national, for any financial support or for any project,” he added.
They have previously endorsed and supported Senator Robin Padilla, Senator Loren Legarda, Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero and other senators, but after the elections, they did not pay a courtesy call to any of them.
Padilla, Legarda and Escudero had been proposing legislative measures in the Senate for the benefit and welfare of the Filipino Muslims.
Only Samira and Richard Gordon out of the 12 Senators endorsed by 1BANGSA during the last elections did not make it.
