Lanao del Norte: Bright Path for Women empowerment

Women empowerment and gender equality are only two of Sittie Aisah "Nancy" Tomawis-Adiong's advocacies as she leads the people of Tangcal, Lanao del Norte to a more empowering and productive future as its new mayor.

As her mother, former Tangcal mayor Fatima Mutia Tomawis, has stepped down after serving the municipality for three prosperous terms, Mayor Nancy found hope in her mother's legacy and decided to carry the torch that served as a beacon for the place.

Responding to the needs of the city and the shoes that needed filling, Mayor Nancy promises the people a local government unit that is "participatory, consensus- oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective, efficient, equitable and inclusive.

"My priority is to carry out reforms that were started by the past administration and we will exert more efforts to attain and sustain growth and development in Tangcal," she said.

Mayor Nancy champions an expansive range of social causes, especially those concentrated on the protection and upholding of the rights of women and children, gender fairness, and economic empowerment of women.

"I always spearhead sustainable and inclusive actions towards gender equality and women empowerment because I, as a woman, recognize that women thrive, innovate," she said. "I can see that more women are conquering inequities and creating opportunities across all aspects of life in our communities in Tangcal."

With her leadership the municipality, the local government unit of Tangcal leverages the capabilities of Civil Society Organizations, private organizations, youth groups, and non-governmental organizations to facilitate a safer environment for the most vulnerable sectors affected by the pandemic outbreak.

A few months after being elected, she already tapped and affiliated organizations that carry her advocacies. These organizations aim to bolster women and child protection response strategies during the pandemic. They also helped in cases such as legal matters, medical needs, and shelter/transition homes amid the Covid-19 crisis.

Daughter's inspiration

Experiencing firsthand how her mother's administration transformed the war-stricken municipality with improvement and growth evident in notable sectors in her constituency inspired Mayor Tomawis-Adiong to maintain the triumphant legacy cultivated by her mother.

During former Mayor Tomawis's three-year term, the poverty rate was reduced to 44.07 percent compared to the rate before her term, which is 79.3 percent as of 2018, per the 2018 Municipal and City Level Poverty Estimates Report.

When her mother assumed office, Tangcal won its first Seal of Good Local Governance in 2019, has been a consistent Good Financial Housekeeping Passer, and is recognized as one of the most functional LGUs in Region 10.

"There will be more focus to be able to satisfy all the requirements for all the indicators for us to be conferred again the highly coveted LGU performance recognition award and incentive program, the SGLG," she said.

As the Tangcal LGU set its eyes toward grabbing the SGLG award again, Mayor Tomawis-Adiong highlighted seven governance areas they will heavily focus on in the following years, namely: (a) financial administration, (b) disaster preparedness, (c) social protection, (d) peace and order, (e) business friendliness and competitiveness, (f) environmental management, and (g) culture and the arts.

"Since my mother had planted the seeds of stability and sustainable growth in what was once an impoverished economic ambiance, I want to focus more on introducing or bringing opportunities for our people as this is the most sophisticated and promising path of development reflected in many of the qualities one can find in Tangcal," she said.

Future of Tangcal

Distressed by wars spanning for years and poor administration dating back before her mother's term, she finds it imperative to allot emphasis on infrastructure as one of her first extensive initiatives.

"In 2012 and the years thereafter, we began introducing reforms. We focused on implementing the much-needed basic infrastructure as it is vital to growth and development. Everything is tied to infrastructure. Without it, Tangcal could not move forward," she said.

She added that due to unpaved farm-to-market roads in Tangcal, she would also focus on providing post-harvest facilities for farmers.

Aside from her post in the office, she also pursues other personal ambitions as she owns a few businesses outside Tangcal. She entrusted supervision to the people taking charge of the daily business operations while she spends the weekends managing the enterprises.

Juggling the responsibilities of being a mayor and the First Lady of Lanao del Sur's Governor Mamintal Alonto Adiong Jr. is no joke, but Mayor Nancy deemed them "important" and that they require effort and consistency to achieve competence and harmony.

"When work demands that I attend to matters of both roles simultaneously, I always assess which one is most pressing and the key isn't really balance, it's integration. Integrating the needs of my office as FL and that of the needs of my LGU is about learning to reprioritize with compassion and flexibility," she said.

Mayor Tomawis-Adiong sees a bright future ahead of the municipality and considers this potentiality in many aspects as Tangcal's unique and promising qualities.

"With more support, I really believe that we can do more and sustain the momentum of our progress and growth and be at par with the other neighboring municipalities in the region after years of hardships," she said.