MANILA, Philippines — Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) interim chief minister Murad Ebrahim approves the reassignment of Agriculture chief Manny Piñol as President Rodrigo Duterte’s “point man” in the region. Duterte met with Murad in Malacañang on Wednesday night. ADVERTISEMENTAsked by reporters if Murad is okay with Piñol’s designation, Duterte said: “Yes.”Some Moro leaders earlier raised doubts on Piñol, pointing out his role in the junking of the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain (MOA-AD) in 2008. During the meeting in Malacañang, Duterte said he and Murad “were trying to fine tune” the BARMM, which was created when the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) was enacted into law. Last June 25, he told the BTA to “hurry up” and cited a supposed communication “breakdown” between him and its leaders.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer July 11, 2019 10:07 UTC