Barangay kagawad captures emblematic mayoral win against Kabankalan reelectionist

B.B., June 9, 2022

SWORN IN. Newly elected Kabankalan Mayor Benjie Miranda takes the oath of office on Monday, May 30, at the Municipal Trial Court in the city. Miranda won against the incumbent mayor in a shocking electoral defeat in the recent May 9 polls. (PHOTO COURTESY of Benjie Miranda FB Page)

A barangay kagawad in the town of Kabankalan in southern Negros Occidental pulled off a major upset after he booted out the reelectionist mayor in the recent May 9 polls, loosening the political foothold of a clan that has long controlled the city.

Riding a grassroots-led campaign, Benjie Miranda finished with 36,889 votes edging out Pedro Zayco Jr., who garnered 36,611 votes, in the mayoral race by a difference of merely 278 votes.

With Pedro’s nephew Miguel Zayco taking the vice mayoral post by a margin of almost 12,000 votes in last month’s elections, Miranda’s win prevented the mayor’s office from becoming a family affair.

Change for a Better Kabankalan

The former military officer decided to run for mayor in the wake of Zayco’s widely criticized response to the onslaught of Typhoon Odette, which inundated the city late last year.

“[The damage caused by] Typhoon Odette was not selective. Many of us were affected, and many struggled,” Miranda lamented in his native language of Hiligaynon in a video last March.

Alongside over 50 volunteers, Miranda mounted a campaign carrying the message of better governance. They went from one house to another to sway voters even in the most remote communities in the city.

“If you will give me the chance [to become mayor], I will show you honest governance that is not selective whether you are well-off or poor,” he appealed.

April Rose Lopez, one of Miranda’s campaign organizers, acknowledged that mounting a campaign against a political giant proved difficult, especially with the lack of resources and machinery.

Lopez recounted how they braved adverse weather, hunger and fatigue to reach every nook and corner of the city.

During a campaign visit to a far-flung community in a mountainous area, she and her team of volunteers struggled to find an affordable ride to their next destination, forcing them to split the fare among each other.

“One time, we were at Brgy. Bantayan heading back to Brgy. Tabugon but we had no ride. Among us volunteers, we chipped in money to ride a tricycle,” Lopez narrated in Hiligaynon.

Asked why she chose to sacrifice even without monetary compensation, she responded that she wanted to give the marginalized sectors a chance to experience better governance.

The People Have Spoken

Miranda’s message of change for a better Kabankalan resonated well enough with the residents to persuade them to vote for him.

TAO SA TAO. Newly elected Kabankalan Mayor Benjie Miranda sits down with residents in a local community to share coffee and conversation on March 18 during the campaign period for the May 2022 elections. Miranda won against the incumbent mayor in a shocking electoral defeat. (PHOTO COURTESY of Benjie Miranda FB Page)

Kate Delgado, 22, whose residence was submerged in floodwater for days when Typhoon Odette hit the province, said that she voted for Miranda because she “wanted new governance… since the people in the position have been there for decades already.”

Aside from boosting the city’s disaster response capability by adding search and rescue equipment, Miranda plans to strengthen local agriculture by ensuring more farm-to-market roads and livelihood programs.

Outgoing Mayor Zayco conceded defeat to his rival Miranda on May 16, calling on the people to support the incoming administration to further the locality's development.

Miranda is affiliated with Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan while Zayco is a member of the Nationalist People’s Coalition. 

A Time of Awakening

Miranda's mayoral win is not the only upset that rocked the Negros Occidental political landscape in the recent May 9 polls.

Several other candidates managed to unseat incumbent officials, mostly belonging to prominent political families.

In the fifth district of Negros, Representative Marilou Arroyo, sister-in-law of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, lost the congressional race to former board member Emilio Yulo III.

Independent mayoralty candidate Joedith Gallego is set to lead Silay City after defeating incumbent Mayor Mark Golez, who is running for his third term as town mayor.

With 12,907 votes, outgoing Municipality of Hinobaan Mayor Ernesto Estrao lost to Jeff Encoy in the vice mayoral race who garnered 14,970 votes. Encoy was Estrao’s vice-mayor in the 2019 elections.

For Dr. Jonathan Lobaton, a political science professor and columnist for a local daily, these election upsets are emblematic of the people's power to claim the government back from the elites.

Lobaton said that coming from the pandemic where many problems were not properly addressed, the masses have shown their voice that it’s high time to have a “new leadership that caters to the needs of the people.”

“You really can’t buy the people all the time,” he quipped.

He added that “talking about [election upsets] as a time of awakening, it could have probably started this May 2022 elections.”

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