Because of Memorandum Circular 2010-119 issued by the Department of Interior and Local Government, it is now required for villages and municipalities to have a representative of indigenous people in the local legislative body, if the village or municipality have a sizable number of indigenous residents. Long before the memorandum was issued, however, villages in the municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino already had Dulangan Manobo officials, and they were elected by the people at large, not put in power through a hazy set of rules allowed by the DILG order. Even in the municipal level, SNA had a Manobo legislator in the person of Datu Ampak Kawan. He was elected as a member of the Sangguniang Bayan for three consecutive terms.
The political feat that Kawan achieved, however, has not been repeated, and the number of elected Manobo officials has been most likely less in proportion to the population of indigenous people in the municipality. I have no complete record of Manobo individuals that have been members of the barangay and municipal legislative councils, but I have a list of those who are currently in office. Again, I’m talking only of those who underwent the regular electoral process and emerged victorious.
Of the twenty barangays of SNA, only four have elected Manobo kagawads. The four barangays are Kiadsam, Lagubang, Midtungok, and Nati. Kiadsam has three Manobo kagawads, Lagubang has two, Midtungok has two, and Nati has two. Kiadsam’s Ayes Anggo and Lagubang’s Baili Agsem have the highest rank, having garnered the second highest number of votes in their respective villages. The other officials in Kiadsam are Napnap Kansalin (ranked no. 4) and Kinding Ewig (no. 7). The other official in Lagubang is Egpo Salaman (no. 3). The officials in Midtungok are Tom Sipot (no. 3) and Anggio Kampil (no. 7). The officials in Nati are Lap Gamad (no. 3) and Asak Agfog (no. 5).
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Monday, April 18, 2016
Friday, October 2, 2015
SNA Barangay Chairpersons
Below are the twenty punong barangays (barangay chairpersons) of the municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino. I took the data from the program of the town’s 26th foundation anniversary celebration, last February. I made sure that the names below are spelled as how they appear in the program. Other than that, I had no way of verifying if the names are accurate, so please use this list with caution.
Again, my source is dated February 2015. Clara S. Fernando of Kapatagan died of stroke a few months ago, but I retained her name in this list because I have not verified yet who replaced her. As I know, though, the Local Government Code dictates that the kagawad (councilor) who garnered the highest number of votes in the election automatically succeeds the chairman if the latter dies. The first kagawad listed in my source is Vicente S. Sariego.
Fernando, by the way, was a relative of mine by affinity. Her husband, who died more than fifteen years ago, was my father’s first cousin. She was such a great loss in her community. She was a perfect example of a dedicated leader. She was also the only woman among the twenty punong barangays of Senator Ninoy Aquino.
The list below is dominated not just by men but Christian men. None of them are Dulangan Manobo, even if indigenous people constitute a good portion of the town’s population. (In some of the barangays, though, a few Manobo have been elected as kagawads. I will write about them in a future post.)
Banali: Alberto C. Cauton
Basag: Leonardo T. Castillon, Jr.
Buenaflores: Renato S. Ruam
Bugso: Roldan C. Marpaga
Buklod: Leopoldo E. Hernane
Gapok: Amador B. Tabujara
Kadi: Ceferino L. Lebuna
Kapatagan: Clara S. Fernando
Kiadsam: Romeo S. Difuntorum
Kuden: Ernesto L. Marzo
Lagubang: Ernesto F. Fantillaga
Langgal: Eddie F. Fabot
Limuhay: Cesario J. Esmejarda, Jr.
Malegdeg: Jesus D. Sarona
Midtungok: Mamerto B. Parong, Sr.
Nati: Filomino D. Defante
Poblacion/Kulaman: Jovito M. Jaspe
Sewod: Toribio P. Patarata
Tacupis: Joebert C. Gumayao
Tinalon: Generoso P. Gacad
Again, my source is dated February 2015. Clara S. Fernando of Kapatagan died of stroke a few months ago, but I retained her name in this list because I have not verified yet who replaced her. As I know, though, the Local Government Code dictates that the kagawad (councilor) who garnered the highest number of votes in the election automatically succeeds the chairman if the latter dies. The first kagawad listed in my source is Vicente S. Sariego.
Fernando, by the way, was a relative of mine by affinity. Her husband, who died more than fifteen years ago, was my father’s first cousin. She was such a great loss in her community. She was a perfect example of a dedicated leader. She was also the only woman among the twenty punong barangays of Senator Ninoy Aquino.
The list below is dominated not just by men but Christian men. None of them are Dulangan Manobo, even if indigenous people constitute a good portion of the town’s population. (In some of the barangays, though, a few Manobo have been elected as kagawads. I will write about them in a future post.)
Banali: Alberto C. Cauton
Basag: Leonardo T. Castillon, Jr.
Buenaflores: Renato S. Ruam
Bugso: Roldan C. Marpaga
Buklod: Leopoldo E. Hernane
Gapok: Amador B. Tabujara
Kadi: Ceferino L. Lebuna
Kapatagan: Clara S. Fernando
Kiadsam: Romeo S. Difuntorum
Kuden: Ernesto L. Marzo
Lagubang: Ernesto F. Fantillaga
Langgal: Eddie F. Fabot
Limuhay: Cesario J. Esmejarda, Jr.
Malegdeg: Jesus D. Sarona
Midtungok: Mamerto B. Parong, Sr.
Nati: Filomino D. Defante
Poblacion/Kulaman: Jovito M. Jaspe
Sewod: Toribio P. Patarata
Tacupis: Joebert C. Gumayao
Tinalon: Generoso P. Gacad
Monday, July 22, 2013
The Two Mayors of Senator Ninoy Aquino
I long wanted to write about the local politics in the municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino. I wanted the first story to be about the 2013 elections, when another set of officials were, at least in theory, chosen by the people. Alas, I could not find the final and official results of the local elections online. Weeks after the elections, the Comelec website had nothing but partial results for Senator Ninoy Aquino, with only 7 percent or so of election returns processed. Now it already has the final results, but it only shows the total number of votes garnered by the winning mayor and vice mayor.
So instead of giving you the list of my hometown's new "public servants," I will just talk about the two men who have been tugging away from each other the municipal hall like kids fighting over a toy truck (or a doll, for that matter). For several elections now, Dante Manganaan and Rafael Flauta Jr. have been clashing against each other for the mayoralty seat. Their rivalry does not end during elections. Manganaan once questioned in court the legitimacy of Flauta's victory, and when the Supreme Court issued its decision, at one point, the two men both declared themselves mayor and marched to the municipal hall with their respective minions.
It all started in the 2004 elections. Flauta, a comparatively old hand in politics, won over Manganaan, a newly retired policeman, by 86 votes. In the 2007 elections, the two met in the battlefield again, and Flauta won again by more than a thousand votes. But here's the catch: in the evening when the votes were being canvassed, a commotion occurred. Explosion, gun fire, or some loud scary noise cut the proceedings short, and the board of canvassers fled to the capital town, Isulan, where the activity resumed. Comelec later declared Flauta the winner, but according to the tally of Namfrel, an election watchdog, Manganaan won over Flauta.
Manganaan brought the issue to an authority of some kind, the higher Comelec office or the courts. Fleshing out the details would take more space here, so you may read instead the Mindanews article and the Supreme Court decision on the case. To cut the story short, Manganaan turned out to be, or eventually declared as, the true winner in 2009. In the 2010 and 2013 elections, Flauta lagged farther and farther behind. But if you were to ask me, I'd say both of them are traditional politicians. Neither of them has elevated the municipality from its fourth-class status.
So instead of giving you the list of my hometown's new "public servants," I will just talk about the two men who have been tugging away from each other the municipal hall like kids fighting over a toy truck (or a doll, for that matter). For several elections now, Dante Manganaan and Rafael Flauta Jr. have been clashing against each other for the mayoralty seat. Their rivalry does not end during elections. Manganaan once questioned in court the legitimacy of Flauta's victory, and when the Supreme Court issued its decision, at one point, the two men both declared themselves mayor and marched to the municipal hall with their respective minions.
It all started in the 2004 elections. Flauta, a comparatively old hand in politics, won over Manganaan, a newly retired policeman, by 86 votes. In the 2007 elections, the two met in the battlefield again, and Flauta won again by more than a thousand votes. But here's the catch: in the evening when the votes were being canvassed, a commotion occurred. Explosion, gun fire, or some loud scary noise cut the proceedings short, and the board of canvassers fled to the capital town, Isulan, where the activity resumed. Comelec later declared Flauta the winner, but according to the tally of Namfrel, an election watchdog, Manganaan won over Flauta.
Manganaan brought the issue to an authority of some kind, the higher Comelec office or the courts. Fleshing out the details would take more space here, so you may read instead the Mindanews article and the Supreme Court decision on the case. To cut the story short, Manganaan turned out to be, or eventually declared as, the true winner in 2009. In the 2010 and 2013 elections, Flauta lagged farther and farther behind. But if you were to ask me, I'd say both of them are traditional politicians. Neither of them has elevated the municipality from its fourth-class status.
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