Uttoh Salem Cutan, executive director of the MNLF-led Southern Philippines Council for Peace and Development (SPCPD), said their decision to field candidates shows their confidence in the peace agreement which the government and MNLF forged in September 1996.
"By entering politics, we are showing our full faith and confidence in the peace agreement which ultimately calls for unity among the people," Cutan said.
Cutan himself admitted that he is seriously considering seeking the gubernatorial post of Sarangani.
His predecessor in the SPCPD post, MNLF secretary-general Muslimin Sema, is seeking re-election as mayor of Cotabato City.
Cutan, a protégé of MNLF chairman and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Gov. Nur Misuari, is also the state or regional chairman of the MNLF’s Selatan Kutawato Revolutionary Committee which covers the Socsksargen growth area and is based in Maasim, Sarangani.
Several MNLF officials and members, according to Cutan, will run for mayor, governor, councilor and board member in different localities in Mindanao.
In joining the political fray, Cutan said they also sending a clear message that the MNLF will "no longer go back to the hills" to assert its cause.
"We cannot really discount entering politics because revolution is ultimately a political struggle," he said.
He said they will continue their struggle for self-determination of the Bangsamoro people by seeking genuine autonomy in Mindanao through peaceful means.
Cutan said the MNLF will continue to work closely with the government in unifying the Mindanao populace — Christians, Muslims and lumads (ethnic groups) — and in seeking a total and lasting peace in the South.