Supporters of jailed Moro leader Nur Misuari are openly supporting Zaldy Ampatuan, mayor of Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao, who is running in the Aug. 8 gubernatorial elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Ampatuan is the official candidate of the Lakas Christian Muslim Democrats, the umbrella party of which the president is a leader.

The Misuari faction of the Moro National Liberation Front decided to back a candidate even after the MNLF had called for a boycott of the elections in protest over President Arroyo’s declaration of a free zone in the ARMM.

Misuari was the founder of the MNLF, but the organization ousted him, and installed Parouk Hussin in his place. The mainstream MNLF is boycotting the elections because Ampatuan not a member of the Front, but is considered Malacanang’s favored candidate.

COMMENT: The ARMM is one of the most underdeveloped areas in the country, full of promise and little else. Misuari was the first governor of this region and he proved himself a better warrior than administrator. He was a divisive governor, even among Moros. But he still wields tremendous influence and his supporters’ backing of Ampatuan could not have happened without his approval.