DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 07 June 2026) – “First, I don’t have his name,” was the quick reply of Ustadha Nur-Ainee Tan Lim, the first nominee of the Mahardika Party, when asked what she can offer the Bangsamoro Parliament other than being the daughter of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) founding chair Nur Misuari.
Mahardika is the regional parliamentary political party (RPPP) chaired by Misuari.
Lim, Deputy Minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s (BARMM) Ministry of Social Services and Development (MSSD) since September 2022, is the youngest of six children of Nur Misuari and Desdemona Tan but she has had to use Lim because she was born at a time when being a Misuari was a “security risk,” she told the Bangsamoro Beyond the Transition Period, the forum that capped the three-day 3rd Mindanao Book Festival at the Ateneo de Davao University on May 23.
“Therefore, what I can offer is I am someone who would rather add to the legacy of my father than take from it or take advantage of it,” said Lim, who graduated high school at the age of 14, college at the age of 18, and has been working since. “I have not taken a month off.”
Every degree she earned, she said, was based on a full merit scholarship.
Lim finished Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies from Preston University Ajman, United Arab Emirates, received a Certificate of Excellence in Tajweed and partial Qur’an Memorization from the Government of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the American University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, and was number one on the Dean’s List in Master in Development Management at the Asian Institute of Management.
She passed the Shari’ah Bar Exam in 2022 and is a licensed Shari’ah Counselor-at-Law.
She also chairs the Socio-economic subcommittee and heads the Secretariat of the Peace Implementing Panel of the MNLF.
She is also Vice-Chair of the BARMM Women Advisory Council and President of Al Husna Foundation, Inc.
Last year, she was among 15 honored with the 2025 The Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service (TOWNS) award.
“I wanted to be the best in terms of academic excellence, but also in implementation and (in being) street smart,” she said.
As Deputy Minister, she said she helped the Minister in stamping out corruption.
“For example, we were able to flush out 124,000 families in the 4Ps programs that are in effect ghost families. Thereby, with that clearly in place, we can now replace them with real families of the Bangsamoro people who will directly benefit from such an effective poverty alleviation program,” she said.
What she can also offer, she added, “is the strict adherence to moral governance.” She said she has dedicated half of her life studying Islam and the other half preaching it through Dawah and Islamic counseling.
“When we talk about Islam, we’re talking about Quran, which as Oxford University says, has been one of the best sources for legislation for that world. So I carry this with me and I offer this as an aspiring Member of Parliament. They say that opportunity is when preparation meets timing.”
Lim said she did not prepare for this opportunity. “But it’s the best opportunity right now that I can imagine, having spent my life wanting to serve the Bangsamoro people.”
“Whether I was educated outside or locally, I want to give back through this democratic exercise and I hope that I will be chosen by my fellow Bangsamoro as a representative not just as a woman, not just as a fellow revolutionary, but as an individual who has worked hard to prepare for this role to serve them with excellence and sincerity,” Lim said.
The Bangsamoro Electoral Code mandates RPPPs to have at least 30% or 12 women out of 40 nominees.
Mahardika is the lone RPPP among 13 where a woman is the number one nominee. (Carolyn O. Arguillas / MindaNews)
