BFP Spokesperson Secures Cotabato City Parliament Seat, Wins 2nd District

MANILA, Philippines – A key figure in the Bangsamoro Federalist Party (BFP) has captured one of the three parliamentary district seats of Cotabato City, the regional government center and capital of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). BFP spokesperson Naguib Sinarimbo topped in the district’s race with 31,114 or 77.91 % of the votes, based on Cotabato City’s total certificates of canvass from the Commission on Elections’ website. This means he will hold onto the parliament seat he was first appointed to in 2025 as part of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA). (READ: Once an MILF ally, ex-BARMM minister returns with Malacañang’s backing before polls) For decades, Sinarimbo has been deeply involved in the formation of the Bangsamoro region and its governance. Sinarimbo was even instrumental in founding the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP), the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s (MILF) regional political party and the BFP’s most contentious rival in the 2026 polls. Now, Sinarimbo has handed his former party a decisive defeat. UBJP bet Zahrumin Andong Midtimbang, who is former Bagua 1 barangay chairman, ranked second with 8,411 or 21.06 % of the votes. Two other candidates joined the four-way race in Cotabato City’s 2nd District. Ex-soldier and former Cotabato City councilor Madatu Brahim Datumanong from the Bangsamoro Party placed third with 246 or 0.62 % of the votes, while former Cotabato City councilor and independent candidate Christina Tan Chua landed in last place with 167 or 0.42 %votes. Long-time public servant In the former Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Sinarimbo was the region’s executive secretary from 2009 to 2011. He also played a key role in forming the BARMM by negotiating the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, which is the final peace accord signed between the Philippine government and the MILF in 2014. When the BARMM was formed, Sinarimbo became the region’s spokesperson and minister of the interior and local government. He later stepped down from the regional government amid a wave of courtesy resignations ordered by then-interim chief minister Ahod Balawag “Al Murad” Ebrahim. But a few months after he left the regional government, in 2024, he joined the Serbisyong Inklusibo–Alyansang Progresibo (SIAP), a party aligned with the Adiongs of Lanao del Sur. A year later, in 2025, he was given a parliamentary seat in the BTA as a presidential appointee. SIAP later formed a coalition with two other parties called the BARMM Grand Coalition, but Sinarimbo eventually left SIAP to join the BFP ahead of the 2026 polls. Like other newly elected parliament members, Sinarimbo will serve a special five-year transition term from October 30, 2026, to June 30, 2031. He will be one of the 32 district representatives making up 40% of the 80-seat Bangsamoro Parliament. – Rappler.com