A Cuyonon group has challenged what it described as the community’s nearly decade-long exclusion from the rotation for Puerto Princesa City’s Indigenous Peoples’ Mandatory Representative (IPMR).
It called on the City Council and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) to act before the incumbent representative’s term ends in October.
The Association of Tribong Cuyonon Y Ang Milagrosa raised the issue during the regular session of the Sangguniang Panlungsod on Tuesday.
Its chairman, Nestor Gabua, said the IPMR position had been held for three consecutive terms by representatives of the Tagbanua and Batak communities, leaving the Cuyonon community without a seat in the city’s legislative body.
“So tatlong magkakasunod na termino na sumasaklaw sa halos isang dekada. Ang upuan ng City IPMR ay tinuring na tila eksklusibong rotation sa pagitan lamang ng dalawang tribo, ang ating mga kapatid sa pamayanang Tagbanua at Batak. Sa tatlong termino, ang katutubong pamayanan ng Cuyonon ay naiwang naghihintay sa labas ng bulwagan ng lokal na lehislasyon,” Gabua said.
He argued that the situation was not a simple administrative mistake but a violation of the law, citing Section 16 of Republic Act No. 8371, or the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act, and Sections 11 and 12 of NCIP Administrative Order No. 3, series of 2018.
Gabua said their council of leaders had filed a verified petition with the NCIP seeking a comprehensive administrative review and revision of the existing guidelines for selecting Puerto Princesa’s IPMR.
The group is seeking immediate action as the term of incumbent IPMR Councilor Dionisio Saavedra, a member of the Batak community, is set to end in October.
Gabua said the Cuyonon community was not asking for special treatment but for what it considered its lawful share in the city’s Indigenous Peoples’ representation.
“Humihingi lamang kami ng aming legal na bahagi sa representasyon. Hinihiling namin na ang tinig ng mga mamamayang Cuyonon na naninirahan nang may kapayapaan at pagkakaisa sa lupang ito, mula po sa panahon ng aming mga ninuno, ay tuluyan nang payagang makasama sa pagbubuo ng mga batas ng lungsod na ito,” he said.
The group also sent copies of its petition and Board Resolution No. 07-007, series of 2026, to the Sangguniang Panlungsod’s committees on people’s organizations and Indigenous Peoples.
Meanwhile, Saavedra expressed support for including the Cuyonon community in the IPMR rotation. He said the Batak community had no objection, although some members of the Tagbanua community had raised concerns that could be addressed through dialogue.
“Pag-usapan natin ’yan kasi pareho naman tayong mga katutubo. Hindi tayo dapat mag-away sa ganyan. Magbigayan tayo,” Saavedra said.
