MSU IIT CASS: Federalism and Gender

With the retirement of Dr. Tanggol as project leader, the team was also able to finish the six-month project on Federalism and Gender with the submission of the Termination Report to the Office of the Chancellor. One of the significant findings which the project yielded is that indeed, the lecture series was able to increase the participants' awareness on Federalism and Gender. And the recommendations:

1. To conduct an in-depth research on the creation of specific model of Federalism suitable to the political, historical and climate of the Philippines;
2. To continue the awareness campaign of Federalism and GAD and their convergences in other HEIs and government offices in Mindanao;
3. To útilize lectures with experts as resource persons in promoting an advocacy, an idea or concepts which are relevant to the community and the country as a a whole.

Our gratitude to Chancellor Alizedney Ditucalan, Vice Chancellor Gau Petalcorin, Prof. Yasmira Moner of GDRC and Dean Marie Joy D. Banawa for their support to the project.

And of course to all the officials, our networks and our participants from the five partner HEIs, Daghang Salamat, Magsukol!

We visited two MSU campuses for our last leg of Caravan of Lectures on Federalism and Gender. MSU-Tawi-Tawi College of Technology and Oceanography's (MSU-TCTO) Chancellor Dr. Mary Joyce Guinto-Sali and other officials warmly welcomed the project team to its bucolic campus upon our arrival on December 12. The lecture series which was conducted the next day, December 13, gave us the most diverse of audience, with participants coming from MSU-TCTO, Mahardika Institute of Technology (MIT); Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Energy (MENRE); Philippine Last Frontier College (PLFC); Tawi-Tawi Agricultural College (TRAC); PNP Special Action Force (PNP-SAF); Tawi-Tawi Criminal Justice College Inc.; )(TTCJCI); LGU-Bongao; Marines Battalion Landing Team 12 (MBLT-12) actively listening and interacting with the speakers.

If MSU-TCTO gave us the most diverse of audience, MSU-Buug provided us with the biggest number of participants in our lectures conducted last December 16, 2022. Composed mostly of faculty members and students from the College of Arts and Sciences, the participants asked though provoking questions, offered insights on Gender and Federalism and helped shed light of the more complex and nuanced interpretation of the concepts.

The two engagements put into practice the oneness of the campuses of MSU System as these paved the way for future partnerships and collaboration.

For these, the team is truly grateful!

We go to MSU-TAwi-Tawi and MSU-Buug for our last leg of caravan of the extension project on Federalism and Gender for this year!

CMU gave us the warmest and most receptive of welcome…

With no less than the CMU President, Dr. Jesus Antonio G. Derije welcoming the Project Team and giving a succinct and meaningful message to the participants, the extension project FEDERALISM AND GENDER: ISSUES AND HAVE FACETS has been successful in cascading and mainstreaming the idea that indeed, Federalism can be a much better alternative form of governance for the Philippines.

Almost 200 participants listened to the talks of Dr. Tanggol on Federalism and of Dr. Estaban on Mainstreaming Gender in a Federal Form of Government in a forum conducted last November 21, 2022 at the CAS AV Hall of the Central Mindanao University. Ms. Ennica Agcorpa, a faculty member of CMU’s Department of Political Science and Kehm Angel C. Socayre, a fourth year BA Political Science student gave their insights and responses to the presentations of the two speakers. A one-hour open forum followed, where questions on the soundness, implementation and effectivity of Federalism were raised. A critical discussion on GAD as a framework of development provided a new lens on how we looked at gender roles and gender as social construct.

Also present to show their support in this collaboration between CMU and MSU-IIT were Dr. Leo G. Labrador, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Dr. Hazel Buluron, GAD Focal Person of CMU.

Our utmost gratitude to the League of Political Science Students and Ms. Grace Galache for the coordination.

Again, our big thanks CMU! Until our next collaboration!

Join us in Maramag, Bukidnon for the third leg of our lecture series on Federalism and GAD!

We had our successful run at the University of Southeastern Philippines in Davao City for the extension project Federalism and Gender: Issues and Facets last November 18, 2022 at the USEP Gymnasium. Attended by more than 150 participants, the event was conducted in hybrid mode, and once again provided a platform for deeper discourse and understanding of Federalism as an alternative form of government and how it can facilitate better Gender and Development (GAD).

Gracing the event were the Vice Presidents Dr. Shirley S. Villanueva (Research Development and Extension), Dr. Tamara Cher Mercado (Planning and Quality Assurance) and Dr. Joeteddy B. Bugarin, Director of Mindanao Center for Policy Studies (MCPS). MCPS was the coordinating office of this collaborative project between MSU-IIT and USEP. Serving as reactors to the lectures of Dr. Tanggol and Dr. Esteban were Atty. Jamil Adrian Khalil L. Matalam of USEP’s School of Law and Dr. Nowah Cyrhyl Balderas, GAD Coordinator of the College of Business Administration.

Thought-provoking and critical questions were raised during the open forum particularly on how Federalism can lessen corruption, maximize political representation in legislative bodies and its viability within the Philippine context. Dr. Esteban’s talk, on the other hand, brought into focus issues on women’s rights which include the legal aspects of abortion and divorce in the Philippines.

Thus, our event in USEP was able to achieve the project’s main objective: to provide spaces for meaningful discussions on Federalism and GAD issues in the hope that more people will be oriented to these broad concepts. This will equip us with critical and sound principles in times when our decision-making is needed and crucial.

Join us in Davao City for the second leg of our lecture series on Federalism and GAD!

Our engagement with the Jose Rizal Memorial State University (JRMSU) brought forth the pressing need to provide spaces for the discussion of Federalism; its strengths and weaknesses, advantages and disadvantages, the feasibilities and the possibilities.

The team was warmly welcomed by Dr. Jay D. Telen, JRMSU’s Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Daylinda Laput, former JRMSU President, who also shared her insights on Federalism as an HEI administrator, and Ms. Janet Grace Recentes, the host’s university’s GAD Focal Person.

Putting Federalism and GAD in the barangay level context is one of JRMSU’s visiting lecturers, Ms. Doris Grace Elorpe who also shared her ideas and insights on Federalism as an alternative form of government. Ms. Elorpe’s experiences in local governance enriched and concretized the basic principles and foundations of this particular form of governance.

The program ended with JRMSU and MSU-IIT exploring the possibilities of other forms of collaboration.

From our team, Daghang SALAMAT JRMSU!!!!!

Dr. Tanggol will be joined by Dr. Ivie C. Esteban in the first stop of the caravan of lectures on Federalism and Gender. Dr. Esteban will explicate the convergences of Federalism and Gender.

Dr. Sukarno Tanggol is the lead proponent of the extension project "Federalism and Gender: Facets and Issues" funded by the Gender and Development Resource Center of MSU-IIT. He is also the main speaker of the series of lectures which will be held in different universities and colleges in Mindanao.