A top official of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) revealed they have formed a "principled" regional political party so they could run candidates in the new Bangsamoro autonomous region in the 2016 election as part of the Mindanao peace process.Mohager Iqbal, the MILF's peace negotiator, said it would be known as the Bangsamoro Justice Party (BJP) and would not be identified with any of the big political parties participating in the election. He said, "It's being registered right now. There have been a lot of engagements towards creating a truly political party that is principled. It has been a difficult process."
Iqbal said several Mindanao politicians he did not identify have expressed interest in joining their party. He pointed out top MILF leaders, including their chairman Al Haj Murad, were not interested in running for elective positions in the Bangsamoro Transition Commission that is to govern the new political entity for one year after the passage and ratification of the law.