Indigenous peoples (IPs) in the city will be holding a general assembly on July 5, 2022 purposely to re-formulate the local guidelines in the selection of the city’s Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representative (IPMR) and the identification of the selectors and nominees for the said post.
Lawyer Severino Lumiqued, officer-in-charge of the regional legal office of the Cordillera office of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP-CAR), disclosed that participants to the gathering will come from the Ibaloi, Kalanguya and Kankanaey tribes from the established ancestral domain and those occupying ancestral lands in the different parts of the city.
He informed members of the local legislative body that the upcoming general assembly of IPs will primarily focus on the approval of the local guidelines in the selection of the city’s IPMR, the identification of the selectors and the possible aspirants for the said position.
However, the NCIP-CAR official claimed that the IPs cannot proceed in the selection of the city’s IPMR because of an existing Memorandum issued by Chairman Allen Capuyan that indefinitely suspended the selection process of IPMRs in the country for various reasons.
According to him, the re-formulation of the local guidelines in the selection of the city’s IPMR was a directive from the NCIP central office following the issuance of the 2021 revised national guidelines in the selection of the IPMR in the country.
Under the revised guidelines, IP mandatory representation is mandated in areas that have approved ancestral domain of IPs and ancestral lands like Baguio City, Davao City and other similarly situated areas.
Lumiqued pointed out that migrant IPs in the city can participate in the aforesaid general assembly but only as observers or unless there is a petition from the said migrant IPs living in the ancestral domain or in ancestral lands for them to be included in the process that would warrant the conduct by the NCIP of the required census to ascertain their number for them to be included in the said process.
Last April 25, 2022, the NCIP called for a public consultation on the selection of the city’s IPMR that will be based on the 2021 revised national guidelines that paved the way for the re-formulation of the local guidelines which will be ratified during the conduct of the general assembly of the IPs in the city.
He stipulated that the NCIP will be facilitating and documenting the conduct of the aforesaid general assembly to ensure this will be done pursuant to the established guidelines for the said purpose that will lead to the eventual selection of the city’s IPMR once the indefinite suspension shall be lifted by the NCIP Chairman in the future.
Lumiqued added that the 3-year term of the IPMR need not conform with the term of office of duly elected local officials but more importantly, the selection is done pursuant to the 2021 revised national guidelines and the local guidelines on the selection of the IPMR which will be ratified by the general assembly for them to be able to select the authorized selectors during the said process.
