Cabeza De Barangay | Second Part

My mom fondly calls her Mareng Holly.

She has been a family friend long before we moved to our new house.  They crossed each other's lives when a realty firm tried to sell lands in our old neighborhood.  We were good-paying tenants as far as we know. My grandparents, who owned the house and were abroad at that time gave their word that they paid on time to the original landholders. While a lot of our neighbors have chosen to quietly abandon their homes, those who refused band together and formed a homeowners association to deal with the firm.  More than a decade later, the ones who signed up still live in the neighborhood. The association may have fragmented over the years but its aims to empower the community had succeeded.

Mareng Holly was the face of the homeowners association and so was her running mate Mareng Ditas. For the longest time, they toured the neighborhood to convince others to join the cause. The barangay was united, but with the glitter of money, some officials and association members have either sold themselves to the firm or resigned to the fact that we are doomed no matter how bold we hold our ground.  This has caused strife within the association.

Soon, factions corroded what was once a united neighborhood.

The ones who now run the barangay were at the fringes of the association during its heydays.  The person who pushed Mareng Holly and Mareng Ditas to run for office might have seen the opportunity after the ex captain passed away last month. Mom and the others knew who this shady figure was. Being the leader, he felt that the association will wane further should they ignore the call of power. Regaining the leadership would have easily worked a decade ago.

But the truth is, the barangay has changed.  Nobody believes in the association anymore.

I assessed the chances of our family friends during the campaign period. My sources tell that Mareng Holly had lost so much credibility, she would have to work overtime to gain the trust of even her neighbors.

"Paano ka ba naman boboto sa kanya, eh yung paupahan niya e nahulihan ng jumper," my source said. "Yung kasama naman niya, yung pamangkin eh kilalang sanggano sa barangay. Ano yun, edi lalong maglalakas loob manggulo yun dito?"

It seems their reputation has preceded them.

What drove the rest to put their trust in the present leadership was the rival's spotless performance.  He was a kagawad for three terms and in those times he was in power, he did his best to make sure the barangay was felt by everyone.  He maybe a queer and a home-renter, but with the majority of voters being outsiders to the association, pundits and critics alike could almost smell his victory.

"Mas gusto ko na ikaw na ang manalo kesa si Boying," Mareng Ditas would eventually say when election was over. She was seated next to the kagawad during the Meeting de Avance. Seeing no hope in sight, she resigned to the reality that it was better for the queer to win than the third, hostile candidate who was more popular than our family friend.

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