A single father from the municipality of Labangan in the province of Zamboanga Del Sur was recently named as Region 9’s Modelong Ama ng Pantawid Pamilya for 2025.

Medal N. Banda, 55, a father of 7 children, bested 52 other contenders in the said competition. Despite a meager income as a farmer, Medal was able to support his children’s holistic needs. He acknowledges that many of his attributes as a modelong ama were from his learning from the various parenting trainings that he attended in the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

The search for Modelong Ama 2025 is 4Ps’ strategy to elicit support from the men sector to champion women empowerment and gender-equality. This is also a way to create awareness that men, too, can be active partners in promoting gender equality by concretely taking active role against gender-based discrimination and gender-based violence cases in families and communities.

While Pantawid Program is considered as having a “woman’s face” with majority of its cash grantees constituting women, it also recognizes that there is a growing need to partner with men to achieve transformed gender relations among Pantawid households.

“We need to advocate and promote protection of women not just to women. For this endeavour to succeed, we need to involve key players that will help up achieve our vision of an inclusive society especially for our 4Ps beneficiaries who are very vulnerable given their circumstance in life,” said Regional Program Coordinator of 4Ps, Flordeliza A. Atuy.

The search for Modelong Ama 2025 is one way to convene allies in women-empowerment, Atuy added.

Other finalists are Wendell Gayo from Mercedes, Zamboanga City who ranked 2^nd following Banda; 3^rd placer is Rogelio Bonsayon from Buug, Zamboanga Sibugay; and 4^th placer is Vellboy Patangan from Sergio Osmeña, Zamboanga Del Norte. They will receive Php 10,000, Php 7,000, Php 5,000, and Php 3,000 cash, respectively, as winners of the said competition.

The awarding ceremony was held last March 27, 2025 at LM Hotel, Tetuan, Zamboanga City.

Banda will represent Zamboanga Peninsula in the national level of the search for Modelong Ama ng Pantawid Pamilya.

Medal N. Banda assists women in their activity