2 Nur ‘loyalists’ running for gov

COTABATO CITY — Two loyal followers of Gov. Nur Misuari have joined the gubernatorial fray in the expanded Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

According to sources at the governor’s office, the region’s environment secretary, Hadji Randy Karon, and the speaker of the Regional Legislative Assembly, Alvarez Isnaji, both beat Tuesday’s deadline for filing of certificates of candidacy.

At Malacañang, President Arroyo formally proclaimed yesterday Dr. Farrouk Hussein, presidential adviser on Muslim affairs, and Wahid Mutilan, former Lanao del Sur governor, as her administration’s candidates for governor and vice governor, respectively, in the ARMM’s Nov. 26 polls.

Hussein is a member of the Council of 15, the new central leadership of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), while Mutilan heads the Ulama League.

Isnaji’s candidacy virtually drew flak from some quarters in the region, describing his move as "a turnaround" from his earlier stance for a deferment of the Aug. 14 plebiscite and the Nov. 26 polls.

Isnaji is a Tausog who hails from Sulu, while Karon is a Maguindanaoan who hails from a coastal town in Sultan Kudarat.

Speculations are rife that Isnaji and Karon filed their candidacies for governor as part of Misuari’s effort to show that he and his remaining followers still wield political clout in the region.

The ARMM’s Bureau of Public Information could not be reached for comment at press time.

The Council of 15 ousted Misuari as MNLF chairman last April.