2 ex-teachers win as Surigao del Norte governor, top provincial board member

SURIGAO CITY - Two former teachers and retired Department of Education (DepEd) officials emerged victorious, the first, winning Surigao del Norte’s tightly contested Gubernatorial race while the other, topping the number one Provincial Board Member spot in recently concluded automated polls here. Proclaimed winners by the poll body was former DepEd Regional Director for Caraga Region and Region 8 Dr. Sol Matugas and former DepEd Surigao del Norte District Supervisor Myrna Romarate. Neophyte Matugas defeated former House of Representative Spice Boy member re-electionist Governor Robert Barbers. Matugas got 111,225 votes while close rival Barbers obtained 109,011 votes. Romarate occupied the number one slot in the ten-man Provincial Board seats garnering 81,176 votes in the final official poll body count. Both are considered to be first in the history of Surigao del Norte politics, Matugas being the first woman Surigao del Norte governor while Romarate was the first woman to be elected number one Provincial Board Member in the male-dominated Sanggunian Panlalawigan chamber. The two ran under local party Padajon Surigao-Lakas-KAMPI. Matugas told GMANEWS.TV she will prioritize in addressing issues and concerns of the women and child sector particularly on education, heath care, livelihood and women and child abuse problems and the role of women for sustainable development. Matugas said under her administration the women will play vital roles in the province’s socio-economic development agenda. For her part, Romarate claimed that aside from issues and concerns of women and child sector that she will help address, she vowed to look into the plight of the senior citizens, environment, and eco-tourism. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV