Nur sacks dozens of MNLF commanders in loyalty check

From the Manila Standard Today (Mar 9): Nur sacks dozens of MNLF commanders in loyalty check

MORO National Liberation Front founder Nur Misuari has sacked dozens of commanders over the past week as the separatist organization staged a loyalty check of its key officials, according to the group’s spokesman Absalom Cerveza.

“We have taken out from the rooster troop commanders who seem to have lost interest in the MNLF organization,” Cerveza said without mentioning the number of people involved while adding that loyalty to Misuari was a primary consideration.

Cerveza announced the purge after Misuari last month expelled Jimmy Labawan, the group’s former vice chairman, who supposedly misrepresented the MNLF when he claimed to be the group’s official delegate to the so-called tripartite review meeting in Jakarta last year.

Misuari also appointed Rolando Olamip, chairman of the MNLF in Davao City, as the new vice chairman of the MNLF.

“We had a series of loyalty check meetings from late last week to early this week,” Cerveza said, adding that most MNLF members reaffirmed their desire to stay in the organization and “prove their loyalty to Nur Misuari.”

He said that the MNLF had a total force of 75,000 fighters scattered in the whole Mindanao region,  500 of which serve as close-in security of Misuari in Jolo, Sulu.
Cerveza said the meetings were divided into separate conferences, two of which discussed what they described as “state forces” and “national security force.”

The biggest group in the meeting came from members in Sarangani, South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat with Cerveza noting that the national force remained intact based on the assessment made.

“We are actually attempting to identify the number of soldiers loyal to Misuari and leaders loyalty to him,” Cerveza said.

At least 30 commanders from the national security force attended the meeting, giving their insights on the organization’s decades of existence as a revolutionary force.

One of the goals of the loyalty check, Cerveza said, was to consolidate, solidify and fortify the ranks of the MNLF.

“At present, I would say that the entire force is solid based on what the commanders and their people had manifested during the series of meetings,” Cerveza said.

He said they will be visiting MNLF camps for an inventory of military armaments and troops in our desire to check the moral of the rank and file.

“We’re just a little bit wary because we are in a situation of no peace and no war,” Cerveza said.

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2014/03/09/nur-sacks-dozens-of-mnlf-commanders-in-loyalty-check/