‘Fastest election’ held in 1914 in Benguet town

‘Fastest election’ held in 1914 in Benguet town

By Maurice Malanes Inquirer Northern Luzon First Posted 05:23:00 04/21/2010

KIBUNGAN, BENGUET— Almost a century before the advent of poll automation, this upland town had its “fastest election” on record, back when many of the native Kankanaey folk could not read and write.

Kibungan (pop: 16,000) had its first taste of electoral politics as introduced by American colonial officials in 1914.

This was after the Philippine Commission of the first Philippine civil government enacted Commission Act No. 48 on Nov. 22, 1900, which organized local civil governments into townships, each to be headed by a directly elected leader called presidente (the equivalent of a mayor).

During an election in 1914, the local elders were ushered into the precedencia or town hall to elect the presidente. The instructions were quite simple: Pick among the candidates—who were made to stand before the public at the town hall grounds—by forming a line behind them.

“The candidate with the longest line was immediately declared the winner,” according to a historic municipal document.

The first elected presidente was a certain Bolnotan who hailed from Palina, the community that served as the seat of the municipal government until 1920.
The presidente could then appoint an escrebiente (the equivalent of today’s secretary) to take down minutes of meetings and draft resolutions.

Voting system

The process got more sophisticated a few decades later. By the early 1950s, the voting system in Kibungan used colored strips of paper about six inches long and half an inch wide.

Again, standing before the people at the town hall grounds, each candidate was assigned a color. Voters would then select among colored strips representing their chosen candidate.

The candidate who got the most number of strips was immediately declared the winner.
The two election methods were considered not only the fastest but the cheapest at the time. (The candidates, after all, didn’t have to spend a fortune for their campaigns.)

The system was again upgraded in 1953, when secret balloting was introduced. The first mayor elected using this method was Alban Molitas, who served from 1953 to 1955.

Despite the introduction of electoral politics, the local nankakay (male elders) had adhered to one unwritten rule: No one should have a monopoly of political power.

The consensus was that, as much as possible, the mayoral position would be rotated among qualified leaders from each of the seven barrios. Hence, no mayor had held more than one term from 1914 to 1963.

The rotation, however, was discontinued in 1964. Mayor Bruno Siadto was able to govern from 1964 to 1986, the longest in the town’s history, largely due to the suspension of local elections for long periods during the Marcos dictatorship.

Changing political

But times have changed in Kibungan. Gone was the nankakay’s unwritten agreement of power-sharing.

After electoral democracy was restored under the Aquino administration, the political landscape in Kibungan has since become like those of other towns.

Any elected official could vie for reelection and serve for up to three consecutive terms. Losers can always make a comeback.

But until the 1970s, few citizens developed an appetite for politics because of the paltry per diems received by elected officials. Many considered politics sangaw or a waste of time.

In the late 1980s, when elected officials began receiving monthly salaries, many well-meaning folks who wish to have a say in municipal affairs saw a more attractive incentive to seek public office.

Although the women of Kibungan had been active as seers, healers and priestesses, they shied away from mainstream politics. This went on for decades until Corazon Aquino came to power as the country’s first female president.

Blazing the path was Rosalinda Ab-ab, who won as barangay chair of Poblacion in 1989 and served up to 1994. She was later elected town councilor, serving from 1996 to 1998.

In 1998, Susan Atayoc also aspired to become a town councilor and won, serving until 2007 after she was reelected in 2004. She won as vice mayor in 2007, the first woman in Kibungan to hold the position.

Another woman, Aureana Sacpa, won a seat in the council in 2001. She holds the position to this day.

Both Sacpa and Atayoc have joined the vice mayoral race this May, forging a three-cornered fight with Councilor Bobby Wayan.