SNA Barangays: Basic Facts

The municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino comprises twenty barangays. Below is some salient information about them, taken from the program of the town’s 26th foundation anniversary celebration last February. According to the program, the original sources of the data are (1) the 2010 records of the National Statistics Office and (2) Catimbang Surveying and Engineering Services, commissioned by the Region 12 Office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Of the twenty barangays, Kulaman/Poblacion has the biggest population, with 3,829, followed by Kuden, with 3,517, and Midtungok, with 3,291. As it should be normally, the three barangays also have the biggest number of households. Buklod has the smallest population, with 1,065. In terms of land area, Bugso is the biggest of all, with 4,653.8826 hectares, followed by Kuden, with 3,788.7286 hectares, and Banali, with 3,132.3004 hectares.

1. Banali
Population: 1,897; no. of households: 451, land area: 3,132.3004 hectares

2. Basag
Population: 3,026; no. of households: 721; land area: 632.7132 hectares

3. Buenaflores
Population: 2,537; no. of households: 604; land area: 1,489.2244 hectares

4. Bugso
Population: 3,215; no. of households: 765; land area: 4,653.8826 hectares

5. Buklod
Population: 1,065; no. of households: 254; land area: 684.4418 hectares

6. Gapok
Population: 1,630; no. of households: 388; land area: 957.9808 hectares

7. Kadi
Population: 1,527; no. of households: 364; land area: 1,601.1149 hectares

8. Kapatagan
Population: 1,083; no. of households: 258; land area: 703.2337 hectares

9. Kiadsam
Population: 1,633; no. of households: 389; land area: 1,536.0501 hectares

10. Kuden
Population: 3,517; no. of households: 837; land area: 3,788.7286 hectares

11. Kulaman/Poblacion
Population: 3,829; no. of households: 910; land area: 211.8801 hectares

12. Lagubang
Population: 2,114; no. of households: 503; land area: 1,938.8767 hectares

13. Langgal
Population: 2,205; no. of households: 525; land area: 2,057.4222 hectares

14. Limuhay
Population: 1,126; no. of households: 268; land area: 947.9810 hectares

15. Malegdeg
Population: 2,089; no. of households: 497; land area: 1,307.9692 hectares

16. Midtungok
Population: 3,291; no. of households: 784; land area: 1,133.911 hectares

17. Nati
Population: 1,453; no. of households: 346; land area: 977.7151 hectares

18. Sewod
Population: 2,165; no. of households: 516; land area: 1,559.5028 hectares

19. Tacupis
Population: 1,209; no. of households: 288; land area: 568.3035 hectares

20. Tinalon
Population: 2,897; no. of households: 690; land area: 2,973.7145 hectares

Senator Ninoy Aquino: Map and Facts in Brief

Land area: 38,250 hectares
Population: 39,038 (projected for 2012, based on 2007 census)
Number of barangays: 20
Estimated distance from Isulan: 80 kilometers
Creation: February 17, 1989, Republic Act No. 6712, from Bagumbayan and Kalamansig
Literacy rate: 83.52% (household population 10 years old and above, 2000)
Population density: 102 persons per sq. km. (projected for 2012, based on 2007 census)
No. of households: 8,208 (projected for 2013, based on 2007 census)
Major industry: farming
Major crops: rice, corn, coffee

Land classification: agricultural, 17,365 has.; non-agricultural, 601 has.; fishing ground, 75 has.; total alienable and disposable land, 18,311 has. (2010)

Types of soils: mountain soils undifferentiated, Dadiangas loamy soil

Forest cover: total forest area, 3,000 has.; closed forest, 500 has.; grassland, 2000has.; mossy, 500 has. (2010)

Timberland area: 1,900 has., 4.97% of total land area (2010)
Inland fishponds: 2.55 has.
Risk-prone areas: affected by drought, 1,216 has; prone to flooding 380 has. (2001)

Area planted by commodity: rice 2,013 has.; corn, 12,119 has. (2010), coffee, 2,785.4 has., coconut, 107.3 has; banana, 50 has.; mango, 31 has.; durian, 60 has.

Scenic spots: Kipulao Falls, Nati Spring, Midpanga Cave, Nati Seven Falls, and Paradise Cave and Falls in Nati; cave in Tinalon; Bugso Cave and Tudog Cave in Bugso; burial urns, Kilabuan Cave, Lagbasan Cave, Bitogon Cave, Batasan Cave, and Kalupingon Cave in Kuden; Saklay Cave in Malegdeg
No. of instructional classrooms: 136 (SY 2009–2010)

Schools: public elementary, 37; private elementary, 4; public secondary, 6; private secondary, 5; public tertiary, 1; private tertiary 1
Income: 64.46 million (2010)
Expenditure: 62.64 million (2010)
Internal revenue allotment: 63. 31 million (2010)
Real property tax collection: 1.08 million (2010)
Registered voters: 22,974 (2010)

‘Manobo of the Water’

After having read quite a few local histories, I learned that scribes often change some details for no good reason. In many cases, they want—or they’re ordered by the higher-ups—to make it appear that the locality or its name has more-than-humble origins, so they use superlative descriptions and blow up ordinary events. In some cases, significant details are omitted. I’m no longer surprised by examples of the former since they abound. Examples of the latter, however, are another matter. They fascinate me, especially if the omission is so glaring, as in the case of Kalamansig. Here’s the official brief history of the municipality as published in “2010 Socio-Economic Profile of Sultan Kudarat Province,” compiled by the Provincial Planning Development Office:

In 1960, Kalamansig, Sta. Clara and Salaman were still barrios of Lebak municipality. The seat of government was still in Kalamansig (now Poblacion, Kalamansig). It was on December 29, 1961 that the municipality of Kalamansig was created by virtue of Executive Order no. 459 of Pres. Carlos P. Garcia.

Like other municipalities, Kalamansig has its legendary origin of folklore. According to records, Kalamansig is a Manobo term which means Manobo of the water or literally “Kulaman-sa-ig”.

Kalamansig is situated on the western portion of the province along the coastal waters of Celebes Sea. It is bounded in the north by the municipality of Lebak; in the south by the municipality of Palimbang; in the east by the municipality of Sen. Ninoy Aquino; and in the west by the Celebes Sea.

The missing piece is particularly glaring to me because it has something to do with Kulaman Plateau. According to other sources, Kalamansig owes its name from a heroic Manobo chieftain who drowned in the river of what is now Kulaman village, the poblacion of the municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino. Kulaman is the name of the chieftain. It’s a proper noun. It’s not a generic term. It’s not another term for Manobo, as what may be deduced from the confusing explanation above. Kulaman was a person, after whom a river was named, after which a village was named, after all of which Kalamansig was named. I hope this redundant explanation of mine has made things clear for you, the reader.

I have a couple of theories as to why the true origin of the name was not stated. Maybe the people who prepared the information did not deem it necessary to explicate because Kulaman is no longer part of Kalamansig. Maybe they did not know how to restructure the previous narrative and just deleted most of it. In either case, they did a disservice to students, researchers, and the like who have come upon the quoted text above. I hope in other and future records, Kalamansig have stated or will state its true complete history.

The Sulok Festival of Senator Ninoy Aquino

(Note: The text below is taken from “2010 Socio-Economic Profile of Sultan Kudarat Province,” compiled by the Provincial Planning Development Office. I edited the text for clarity purposes, but I’m not vouching for the accuracy of the content.)

Senator Ninoy Aquino is located at the mountainous part of Sultan Kudarat Province, where the Dulangan Manobo tribe is the original settlers of the area. Years after, the rich and vast resources of the area prompted the influx of many Christian settlers in Kulaman. Together they enjoy the vastness and the rich natural resources of the place.

Sulok is the Manobo Dulangan term for basket. Long ago, the forefathers of the Dulangan Manobos made suloks from tree barks. Now, Manobo women have learned to weave and use dapdap (a kind of bamboo) and nito (rattan). The Dulangan Manobos, especially the women, often store their adornments and other belongings in a sulok and sling it on their heads or shoulders when they’re traveling. The Manobo also use a small sulok called sinagfeng. Chewing ingredients such as betel nuts, tobacco, ash, and buyo are kept in the sinagfeng.

During planting season, Dulangan Manobos perform rituals to ask for a plenteous harvest later on. Part of the ritual is using suloks as containers of the seeds that they are going to sow. After the harvest, the Manobos also store their produce in suloks. (I’m not sure if I have rewritten this part accurately. The original is quite confusing. —Blogger)

Manobos are nomadic by nature, and suloks are used as containers in transferring their belongings from one place to another. Through Resolution No. 02-08 series of 2002, it was declared that “Sulok Festival” be the official name of the foundation anniversary celebration of Senator Ninoy Aquino.

The sulok symbolizes the struggles and efforts of the Dulangan Manobos. It also symbolizes the unity of the constituents, together with the local government, who are now reaping the fruits of their labor and sacrifices. Sulok Festival was declared as the official name of Senator Ninoy Aquino foundation anniversary celebration to inculcate the paramount role of oneness and belongingness among the populace. (This is a shorter version of the original, which, in its pompousness and verbosity, is simply discombobulating. —Blogger)

Through this festival, Senator Ninoy Aquino has started to boost its name and the natural wonders and resources that can be found in the municipality. This great success is accredited to the Manobo Dulangan tribe.

A Questionable History

Below is the official brief history of the municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino. I took it from the “2010 Socio-Economic Profile of Sultan Kudarat Province,” compiled by the Provincial Planning Development Office. The history was probably provided by my town.

I hate to help spread inaccurate information, so please be reminded to take the text below with a grain of salt. I’m reprinting it here as is. The point of view is poblacion-centric. The origin of the municipality is traced from the capital village when, in fact, Kulaman was just one of the villages that constituted Senator Ninoy Aquino when the municipality was created. My own village, Langgal, for example, has never been part of any territory named Kulaman. For my part, while I often say that “Kulaman Plateau” is my “hometown,” I’ve never said—or meant to say—that Kulaman is a municipality.

Another thing that I take issue is the part about the burial practices for Manobo sultans. The persons who wrote the “history” apparently let their imagination run away with them. If the Manobos indeed waited for seven years—from the death of the sultan to the time when his bones could be transferred to a burial jar—to “crown” a new sultan, who ruled them in those seven years? I also have doubts if the Manobos really had sultans the way the Maguindanaons had, but this is another discussion. Maybe I should write a more accurate brief history and give a copy to the municipal hall.

Before the advent of Christian settlers, Senator Ninoy Aquino (formerly Kulaman) was one of the mountainous areas that belonged to the territorial control of the municipality of Kalamansig. The place was inhabited by an ethnic group known as Manobo.

The name Kulaman is derived from the famous Sultan of the Valley during the seventeenth century. According to a legend, there was a time when famine came to the place and the Sultan who was a loving father to his family gathered “kayos”, a native food that substitutes cereals, for their consumption. The Sultan washed the kayos in the center of the river called Matiao. While he washed the kayos a swift current suddenly rushed and the Sultan was carried away by the current and was drowned. His body was later recovered two kilometers downriver from the place where he washed the kayos.

The natives then preserved the Sultans’ for seven years and transferred him to a burial to the burial jar [sic] and kept in a cave for the next century. After the Sultan was buried in the burial jar, a new Sultan was crowned to rule the place. This was their culture during that time.

The river Matiao from that time was renamed Kulaman, in memory of the drowned Sultan. From the death of Sultan Kulaman, the following were his successors: Sultan Jani, Sultan Ugis, Sultan Tilok, Sultan Kalolong and Sultan Dakias.

Sultan Tagenek Dakias was the first ethnic tribe (Manobo) elected as a Sangguniang Bayan member when Municipality of Kulaman was created.

On September 12, 1972, Kulaman became a barangay of the Municipality of Kalamansig and a mother barangay of Buenaflores, Bugso, Kadi, Malegdeg, Kiadsam and Sewod.

It was under Republic Act 6712 that Kulaman was created as a municipality on July 11, 1989 and was renamed Senator Ninoy Aquino, separating it from its mother municipality of Kalamansig. Two thirds of the area of the new barangay [sic] came from Kalamansig while one thirds is from Bagumbayan.

The first appointed and elected Mayor was Gelacio Defuntorum. At present the municipality has 20 existing barangays. The Poblacion retained the name Kulaman, while the municipality was named Senator Ninoy Aquino in honor of Senator Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. who at that time became the modern hero of Filipinos when he became an instrument for the downfall of a dictatorial government.