Mujiv Hataman

Mujiv Sabbihi Hataman (born September 11, 1972) is a Filipino politician and indigenous people's rights advocate from the Yakan people of the Sulu Archipelago. He served as the sixth and last regional governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) from 2011 until it was replaced by the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2019. He previously served as the party-list representative of Anak Mindanao from 2001 to 2010.^[1][2]

Early life and education

Hataman was born on September 11, 1972, in Buli-Buli, Sumisip, Basilan. He came from an influential family. His grandfather is the Panglima or leader of Yakan in Sumisip while his father was the barangay captain of Sumisip when it was still a barangay.^[1]

Officer-In-Charge of ARMM

On December 22, 2011, due to the "Reform Programs" of President Benigno Aquino III Congressman Hataman was appointed as Officer-In-Charge of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The move was criticized by many as Hataman was not a member of the Regional Legislative Assembly. Under Republic Act No.^[1]

Full term as ARMM Governor

During his assumption as OIC-Regional Governor, Hataman announce that he will not run as Regional Governor to focus on his reform programs. But months before the filing of candidacy for 2013 election he was convinced by many cause oriented groups in Mindanao to pursue for a new mandate.^[1]

House of Representatives

Since 2019, Hataman has been serving as the representative of Basilan's lone district. He served as a House Deputy Speaker from 2019 until 2022. In 2022, he joined the minority bloc and was named as a deputy minority leader.^[1]

Notable house votes

On July 10, 2020, he was one of the 11 representatives who voted to grant the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN.^[1]

Governor of Basilan

Hataman was elected governor of Basilan in the 2025 Philippine general election, defeating his nephew, Jay Hataman Salliman. One of his first acts in office was banning his name and image from being used in official projects.^[1]

Human rights advocacy

Mujiv served as a program coordinator of the Kahapan Foundation—Moro Human Rights Center (Kahapan-MHRC). When he was elected to Congress, he sponsored the Anti-Discrimination Bill, which affirmed the International Convention against All form of Racial Discrimination.^[1]

Relationship with Wahab Akbar

Hataman started as an ally of former Basilan governor Wahab Akbar; he served as Akbar's chief of staff while he was Governor, and in 2001 was supported as the main party-list Anak-Mindanao candidate to the House of Representatives. Under the party-list system, an underrepresented group or party can obtain one House seat for every two percent that it gets of the party-list votes, with a maximum of three. AMIN achieved the minimum threshold despite election irregularities that nullified some of its votes, but the Supreme Court then issued a temporary restraining order that prevented the party-list representatives from being sworn in.^[1]

Accusations in Akbar assassination

Captured suspect and former Tuburan town mayor Hajuron Jamiri accused both Mujiv and his brother Jim as being the masterminds of the November 2007 bombing at the House of Representatives that killed four people including Wahab Akbar. Jamiri claimed in a two-page affidavit that Mujiv and Jim wanted Akbar dead because Basilan would "not be at peace" under his administration.^[1]