‘Positive change and transformative leadership for IPs … needed’ - Cong. Mangaoang on World IPs Day

Tabuk City, Kalinga ─ Congressman Allen Jesse Mangaoang, in a message during the celebration of the World Indigenous Peoples Day on August 9, advocated for positive change and transformative leadership to continuously facilitate social contracts capacitating the indigenous peoples in the world.

Mangaoang believes that an Indigenous Peoples leader is similar to that person who won the 2013 gold man environmental prize, in which a leader recognizes the vital roles of each part of the earth that when one part is missing, the earth will be paralyzed.

In an interview, he said it is imperative that a leader knows the relations between people and the environment and respects them.

The valiant contributions of indigenous peoples, the Congressman said, ensure human existence in a sustainable environment.

In his speech, he likewise underscored that “the sustainable practices of environmental stewardship may be practiced and in memorial be given due acknowledgment in our celebration, because they are the only sustainable practices that keep the world in ecological balance.”

Mangaoang attested to the need to preserve the heritage and culture as it plays an important role in sustainable development, cultural diversity, and shaping the character and values of society. This is despite the threat to IP communities in some parts of the world due to aggressive development undertakings.

“This is where new social contracts should be initiated by world leaders in order to empower our indigenous peoples and protect them from the effects of industrialization. It is then our responsibility to make sure that their habitats are not destroyed in the name of progress and development,” he expressed.

He then assured the establishment of new social contracts through legislation, citing the indigenous people’s rights act as landmark legislation that infused new dimensions empowering the indigenous peoples.

Aside from the 17 bills filed in Congress to advance and protect the interest of the indigenous peoples, he ensured that the Bayanihan 1 and 2 will leave no one behind, most especially the indigenous people.

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