COTABATO, Philippines – A village chairman and his wife were killed in an ambush in Sultan Kudarat town, Maguindanao del Norte, late Sunday night, August 18.
The ambush took place weeks before the September 7 plebiscite on Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Parliament Bill 223, which seeks to create the new town of Nuling from the existing Sultan Kudarat town. Security has been tightened in the town as a result.
Police said the victims, Esmael Latip Mustapha, the barangay chairman of Bulibod, and his wife Rahima, were attacked by at least six heavily armed men as they were on their way home just after 10 pm. Rahima also served as Bulibod’s barangay secretary.
The assailants, wielding high-powered firearms, opened fire on the couple along Bulibod Road, just meters from their residence. Both victims died instantly from their wounds.
The motive behind the killings remains unclear, and the families of the victims have not yet issued a statement.
The deadly ambush took place amid rising violence in the BARMM, a special autonomous political territory which will hold its first regional parliamentary elections in 2025, six years after its creation.
International monitors, including the Council for Climate and Conflict Action Asia (CCCA) and the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, have raised concerns about the potential for violence in the 2025 BARMM elections, given the region’s history and current political dynamics.
Maguindanao del Norte, where the Sunday ambush took place, is a newly established province formed from the now-defunct Maguindanao province in 2022. Its acting governor, Abdulraof Macacua, is a senior leader of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a group whose leadership in the region faces challenges from entrenched political dynasties.
In its recent bulletin, “Mounting Displacement in the Bangsamoro,” the CCCA noted a significant increase in deadly violence as the Bangsamoro prepares for its first parliamentary elections in May 2025. – Rappler.com