I agree with you. This is a repurposed Maguindanao blade with a T'boli hilt.
There was often a lot of trade between these areas, and there are several examples like this. This particular example also seems to have a large forging flaw or crack opening, making this unusable for Maguindanao fighting. Perhaps it was deemed usable enough for a T'boli or it is more a status piece for a T'boli. The blade looks to be from the last quarter of the 1800s.
I also noticed that the silver covering at the base of the blade has a crude repousse "magic square" and other talismanic symbols, placed at a later date.
Is there a scabbard with it?
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