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WORLD MAYOR 2018
Profiles |
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FRONT PAGE About World Mayor City Mayors Foundation    WORLD MAYOR 2018 • Results 2018 • Project 2018 • Shortlist 2018 • Longlist 2018 • Raison d'être • World Mayor history • World Mayor Prize • Code of Ethics • Criteria • Meet the Press INTERVIEWS WITH • Mayor of Ancona • Mayor of Doncaster • Mayor of Rennes • Mayor of Zamboanga ESSAYS BY • Mayor of Ancona • Mayor of Cologne • Mayor of Doncaster • Mayor of Fort Worth • Mayor of Lille • Mayor of Paris • Mayor of Rennes • Mayor of Saarbrücken • Mayor of Trbovlje • Mayor of Tunis • Mayor of Zamboanga TESTIMONIALS • Mayor of Alphen / Rijn • Mayor of Ancona • Mayor of Baden-Baden • Mayor of Calais • Mayor of Chemnitz • Mayor of Cologne • Mayor of Cozumel • Mayor of Doncaster • Mayor of Fort Worth • Mayor of Grand Rapids • Mayor of Lille • Mayor of Lodz • Mayor of Molenbeek • Mayor of Narayanganj • Mayor of Oakland • Mayor of Omaha • Mayor of Paris • Mayor of Rennes • Mayor of Reutlingen • Mayor of Saarbrücken • Mayor of San Juan • Mayor of Trbovlje • Mayor of Tunis • Mayor of Zamboanga • Mayor of Zurich PROFILES OF • Mayor of Ancona • Mayor of Cologne • Mayor of Doncaster • Mayor of Fort Worth • Mayor of Lille • Mayor of Paris • Mayor of Rennes • Mayor of Saarbrücken • Mayor of Trbovlje • Mayor of Tunis • Mayor of Zamboanga WORLD MAYOR 2016 WORLD MAYOR 2014 WORLD MAYOR 2012 WORLD MAYOR 2010 WORLD MAYOR 2008 WORLD MAYOR 2006 WORLD MAYOR 2005 WORLD MAYOR 2004 |
 Beng ClimacoMayor of Zambonaga City, Philippines Awarded the 2018 World Mayor Commendation 12 February 2019: Beng (Maria Isabella Salazar) Climaco has been elected and re-elected as the mayor of Zamboanga City, Philippines. Shortly after being first elected in 2013, the Zamboanga faced an armed uprising by Islamic rebels, which led to a 19-day siege of part of the city and a violent confrontation with Government forces. By the time the rebels had been defeated, 183 people had died and around 100,000 local citizens had been displaced. Since then, Mayor Climaco has used her position to consistently press for justice for the victims of the attack. She was undaunted by the challenges of recovery from such a catastrophic event and, after the event, took initiatives to heal divisions. Amongst these she convened an Inter-Religious Dialogue Council. Known as Beng, Mayor Climaco has overseen a significant revival in Zamboanga City despite the problems in recovering from the siege. The city has improved in economic performance rankings. In 2017 her administration won an award as most improved local government unit and is now ranked four in the country for resilience. Mayor Climaco has earned widespread support and respect amongst residents and from wider afield. Although a member of the Liberal Party, she has criticised national government agencies where necessary. For example, she described the National Housing Agency as corrupt and unfit in 2018, demanding reform. She was injured when one of their partly built homes collapsed when she was on site at a media event. The mayor has set Security, Health and Education (SHE) as the priorities for her administration. She has ensured the city invests heavily in security whilst also engaging in an inclusive way with different sections of the population. Total crime has reduced every year on her watch. Since 2016 there have been no bombing or kidnapping incidents and gradually the perceptions of the city from outside are improving. She has made the children of the city her top priority. Utilising her knowledge of education as a former teacher, she designed and implemented a Professional Enhancement Training Programme for teachers in the city. Beng Climaco has spoken openly about the situation faced by female leaders in the country. She has spoken at local and international conferences of being bullied in political life because she is a woman. Undaunted, she writes in her essay “never underestimate the strength of a woman. We may have a lot of barriers in various fields and different roles that we play but once we get over the barriers, women are able to transform and possibilities happen.” Ms Salazar Climaco has worked as a journalist, TV anchor, academic and children’s guidance counsellor. She has a degree in education. She served as a Vice Mayor in Zamboanga City from 2004 until 2007 and as a member of the Philippines House of Representatives from 2007 until 2013. Extract from Mayor Climaco’s essay: In crisis, it was my faith in God, which sustained me. The United Nations and the international community with the national government came to help and set up structures for humanitarian response and early recovery. We then prepared the Zamboanga Roadmap to Reconstruction and Rehabilitation. Today 80% of homes have been finished. Though water, sanitation, and electricity remain a challenge and additional shelters are still needed. We were able to rebuild our City and the lives of our people. Today, Zamboanga City is the 4th Most Resilient City in the Philippines as recognized by National Competitiveness Council. Resiliency is our ability to recover from natural and man- made disasters or crises. Amidst all issues, threats and challenges, we shared moments of strength and fortitude, we shared narratives of hopes and dreams, and we bounced back better and stronger as a people and as a community. That is the power of collective resiliency and social inclusion, especially when we help lift each other up. And because of that, the City Government of Zamboanga has enjoyed and reaped unprecedented success in the years that followed. MORE Typical tribute: Mayor Beng’s style of leadership as our city mayor has opened affirmative possibilities for la bella ciudad de Zamboanga (beloved city of Zamboanga). I believe the city has become more vibrant and more in touch to its identity. When she was elected Mayor in 2013, a litmus test to her leadership happened a few months after, with the infamous Zamboanga siege led by followers of Nur Misuari, founder of the Moro National Liberation Front. I believe that she never rested until it ended three weeks later. I witnessed her courage and steadfastness, as I also affirmed the deep faith she has with her God. I believe that her deep faith sustained her in those trying days. The aftermath of it is much herculean. She tried and consistently persevere in narrowing the gap between and among the tri-people of zamboanga: Lumad, Muslims and Christians. In response to the challenged brought forth by the 2013 Zamboanga siege she convened the City Inter-Religious Dialogue Council. It is a platform where religious leaders and select members of the academe, security sector and ngo’s come together for discussion relating to inter-religious dialogue. Recently, she also convened the Technical Working Group on Countering Violent Extremism and Terrorism whose members are multi-sectoral as the IRD Council but the focus matter is relating to consolidating efforts in countering the narratives and actions of violent extremists. She may be a woman but for me she has warrior’s heart with a mother’s touch. Certainly, it is not a perfect leadership… but the sincerity of her heart, for me, is openly manifested, consistent to what she says and do. For I would rather have a mayor who is deeply spiritual and aware of her strengths and weakness, rather than to have a leader who is pretentious and deceitful. In the multi-cultural setting we are with a backdrop of the challenged of radical extremism in the peninsula and in the region, while at the same time work for the development and improvement of the city, I believe, that she is one woman leader worth emulating, hence worthy of recognition. MORE Further reading ESSAY | TRIBUTES | INTERVIEW |