New Zamboanga del Norte governor vows change in treatment of IPs

ZAMBOANGA DEL NORTE, Philippines – Zamboanga del Norte Governor Rosalina Jalosjos on Saturday, July 2, took her oath as the province’s new leader with a vow to alleviate the lives of the Subanen, an indigenous people’s group long marginalized and discriminated.

Jalosjos wore Subanen clothing and took her oath of office before Johnny Anugon Jr., Zamboanga del Norte’s Timuay Labi (highest tribal leader), afterwhich a Subanen group danced as part of a Buklog, a tribal ritual to show gratitude to the spirits.

The new governor is the sister of former Zamboanga del Norte congressman Romeo Jalosjos. Dapitan Mayor Seth Frederick Jalosjos and Zamboanga del Norte 1st District Representative Romeo Jalosjos Jr. are her nephews.

Her inauguration, two days after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assumed his post, was the culmination of the week-long festival Kasa-Kaza or Kasadya sa Kadaugan (victory celebration) in Zamboanga del Norte.

“Under my administration, I will see to it that development and aid will reach the remotest village of Zamboanga del Norte,” the former mayor of Dapitan City said.

Tribal leader Eugenio Arama of Siayan town said the new governor made the province’s indigenous people feel important, and they were optimistic that she would fulfill her promise to the Subanen.

“We are not asking for anything except respect, not just from government officials, but also from our fellow residents of Zamboanga del Norte,” said a teary-eyed Arama.

Arama said the Subanen have long been discriminated, and treated like “filthy, ignorant, and ugly.” 

“We survived, and with the new provincial leadership, perhaps, we can now get the respect that we deserve,” he said.

Jalosjos, who has Subanen roots, promised to give them their rightful place in the society. She said the capitol is now open for the Subanen years after they were driven out of their ancestral domain in Dipolog, Zamboanga del Norte’s capital city.

Many Subanen families were gradually evicted from their homes in Dipolog City and displaced since 2000, specifically in two tribal communities in the village of Santa Isabel, in the name of development.

What used to be their home is now a place for establishments and multi-story buildings that house local offices of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and the Dipolog City Police Office.

“Zamboanga del Norte is the bastion of the Subanen tribe. How can we drive these amiable people from their homes? I will correct the wrong they suffered, and they don’t deserve to be called ugly. We are human; we too are beautiful,” Jalosjos said. – Rappler.com