WHILE national attention remains fixed on the Senate sessions surrounding the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, another kind of political tension is quietly unfolding in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), one that may have profound implications for the future of the peace process itself.

On May 18, thousands of Moro residents, supporters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), members of the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP), educators, students and sympathizers gathered in Cotabato City in what observers described as one of the largest political rallies in the region in recent years. The gathering reflected growing unease within sections of the Bangsamoro over recent political developments affecting the region.