Moro leaders back new WestMinCom chief’s peace drive
COTABATO CITY — Bangsamoro regional officials and leaders of two Moro fronts that have separate peace compacts with Malacañang have assured their support for the peacebuilding initiatives of the new commander of the Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom).
Maj. Gen. Donald Gumiran, commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division (ID), which covers Central Mindanao and parts of the Bangsamoro region, was installed as chief of WestMinCom based in Zamboanga City effective October 6.
Officials of the 6th ID in Camp Siongco, Barangay Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte, told reporters on Saturday, October 11, that Gumiran will, in the meantime, serve concurrently as commander of both the division and WestMinCom.
“We shall support his peace and security programs as commander of the WestMinCom just the way we supported his peacebuilding activities as commander of an Army division in Central Mindanao,” Bangsamoro Labor and Employment Minister Muslimin Sema, chairman of the Moro National Liberation Front, said Saturday.
The 6th ID covers the provinces of Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur, as well as Cotabato City — all under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
The division also maintains units in Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato, and Sarangani provinces in Region 12, including the component cities of Tacurong, Koronadal, and General Santos.
BARMM Chief Minister Abdulrauf Macacua said he will instruct all regional agencies under his office to help Gumiran advance WestMinCom’s peacebuilding and humanitarian thrusts.
“There is no problem with us supporting his leadership of the WestMinCom,” said Macacua, who also serves as chief of the MILF’s Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces.
Gumiran, a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1992, has extensive experience serving in Army units across Moro areas in Central Mindanao.
He previously led the 6th ID’s 602nd Infantry Brigade in Cotabato province before assuming command of the division on January 25, 2025.
Peace, humanitarian work
BARMM Health Minister and ophthalmologist Dr. Kadil Sinolinding Jr. said he is grateful to Gumiran for supporting the medical service missions of their ministry in far-flung areas of Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte.
“We will continue that partnership with him now that he is commander of the Western Mindanao Command,” Sinolinding said.
WestMinCom’s area of responsibility covers all five provinces and three cities of BARMM, along with parts of Region 12.
Weapons collection and rebel surrenders
Local executives in Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte told reporters that, under Gumiran’s leadership, the 6th ID and local government units had collected 986 unlicensed firearms — including assault rifles, M60, caliber .30 and .50 machine guns, mortars, and anti-tank rocket and grenade launchers — since he became division commander in January.
Army units across Central Mindanao also worked with local officials and traditional Moro leaders to secure the surrender of 598 members of the outlawed Dawlah Islamiya and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters during Gumiran’s eight-month tenure as 6th ID commander.
Praise from local officials
Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza, chair of the multi-sector Regional Development Council 12, expressed gratitude to Gumiran for helping implement her administration’s peacebuilding projects in Muslim, Christian, and non-Moro Indigenous communities in the province.
“We can’t thank him enough,” Mendoza said. She is a staunch supporter of Malacañang’s separate peace initiatives with both the Moro National Liberation Front and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
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