A WORTHY SERVANT LEADER AND HER TOWERING LEGACIES

She was easily the most awe-inspiring figure in the political history of Davao Oriental. The depth and scale of what she had achieved were staggering and brought a sea of change, a new political order to the landscape of this sunshine province.

Governor Corazon N. Malanyaon represented the breed of no-nonsense government leaders who meaningfully transformed her province from a perennial laggard into Davao Region’s fast-rising model of good local governance.

She built one towering legacy after another, fulfilling her promises to her people. Known as a “Worthy Servant Leader,” she gained fame for her remarkable achievements as a government official. But amid the accolades that she rightfully earned and deserved for her exemplary brand of leadership worthy of emulation, she maintained her humility and served as a leader devoted to her constituents.

Malanyaon was a woman of many fine qualities, but her vision for Davao Oriental and its people, her strong will and commitment to pursue it with a sense of urgency, her passionate and dynamic leadership, adherence to high aesthetic and quality standards as well as her loving, forgiving, and generous personality are some of the defining qualities that shaped her performance as a leader.

Malanyaon aspired to lead as she knew back then in 2007 that the people of Davao Oriental were craving for genuine leadership, leaders who lead by their moral authority to inspire, elevate people, and enlist them in a shared journey.

When she took over as governor in 2007, Davao Oriental was a deteriorating low-class province in the region marked with all the negative development indicators, including high poverty incidence, high malnutrition prevalence rate, poor health services and facilities, high unemployment, low agricultural productivity, and low revenue collection efficiency. It was also a hotbed of the long-running communist insurgency.

Before her nine-year term ended in 2016, Governor Malanyaon managed to transform her province into a status that become a leader in agriculture and the first province in the Davao Region to be declared as “insurgency-free” by the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

The province has become a model of competent and participatory local governance. Under her leadership, Davao Oriental has achieved a remarkable record of being the most awarded local government unit in the region and benchmarked for its best practices in local governance in the country.

Davao Oriental has become the most outstanding province in agriculture, disaster preparedness, health, local revenue collection, peace and order, and in addressing malnutrition prevalence rate. In fact, the province has been the recipient of the most prestigious award from the DILG—the Gawad Pamana ng Lahi, also known to be “an award for excellence in local governance,” which is the “mother of all awards.”

TOWERING LEGACIES

Malanyaon built towering legacies: The DAVAO ORIENTAL PROVINCIAL MEDICAL CENTER that bears the amenities of a high-end private hospital but caters to the rural poor; a world-class Provincial Museum named SUBANGAN featuring Davao Oriental’s cultural and natural heritage, including the biggest sperm whale on display in the Philippines; a Halfway House or HAPPY HOME-transitional home for rebel returnees where services such as psychosocial, spiritual, counseling livelihood trainings are extended preparatory to their integration into their respective communities; CATEEL IRRIGATION SYSTEM which features the biggest irrigation dam in Mindanao, a World Bank funded project which is province-initiated and managed and which would assure Davao Oriental a one hundred percent rice sufficiency level.

In 2014, Malanyaon also brought worldwide fame to a province that is blessed with the earliest rays of the new millennium sunrise by successfully getting the UNESCO INSCRIPTION OF MOUNT HAMIGUITAN RANGE WILDLIFE SANCTUARY AS A WORLD HERITAGE SITE.

She also established several eco-parks across the province. The Mount Hamigutian Eco-Park in San Isidro, Welcome Park in Banaybanay, Cape San Agustin Eco-Park in Governor Generoso, Pusan Point in Caraga, Sunrise Boulevard in Baganga, Riverview Park and Aliwagwag Eco-Park in Cateel, and Pacific View Park in Boston, are now popular tourist destinations that boosted Davao Oriental’s tourism industry.

After a six-year hiatus as a local chief executive, Malanyaon came back as governor of Davao Oriental in 2022. Just one year after making a triumphant comeback, she once again embarked on a remarkable journey toward advancing the province’s growth and prosperity.

Demonstrating a profound commitment to making a positive impact on the lives of others, she led true to her slogan “Service with a Heart.”

In just one year, she reorganized the province and poured the much-needed service to where they were needed most. Focusing on tourism and agriculture, she fixed the roads in remote villages that had been neglected for years through her Oplan Karsada.  She put up solar light projects and worked on putting renewable and cheap energy, and continued working for the operationalization of the Mati Airport. She was hands-on in the plans for new tourism structures and initiated the Davao Oriental Beautiful campaign with the aim of promoting the province as a premier tourist destination in the region and the country.

One of the programs that left a lasting impact on the people was her program on social services. It catered to thousands of Oriental Dabawenyos who were in critical need of medical and financial aid. Her immense compassion towards the impoverished is something that the people of Davao Oriental will always remember her for.

Now, amidst her absence, the people across the province express their satisfaction with their local government and now speak with pride for their province. More importantly, there is now a sense of ownership in what has been remarkably achieved and a strong commitment to sustaining the gains. PIO-Davao Oriental