Netizens commend one indigenous student for being the first Mangyan to graduate at NIPSC

• Anthony Suday is the first Mangyan to graduate from the Northern Iloilo Polytechnic State College (NIPSC)
• Rene Sausa posted a picture of Suday wearing his toga together with his father, and netizens congratulated the college grad
• Formal education in the Mangyan community has always been an issue, Suday’s achievement serves as an inspiration and a bright example for help and opportunities to come to ethnic tribes

A young college graduate is making the rounds online for being the first Mangyan to do so in Northern Iloilo Polytechnic State College (NIPSC).

Facebook user Rene Sausa posted a picture of Anthony Suday, wearing his toga and proudly smiling at the camera together with his father. Suday, the celebrated Mangyan, will march to get his Diploma in BS Agriculture on April 2, 2019.

Sausa in his caption of the post, divulged the circumstances of Suday and his journey to being a college graduate. “He is from Mayba, Pag Asa, Occidental Mindoro. He started his life with us since 2011, as a 2nd year high school student. He is with his father, who traveled for 2 days from Mindoro, to attend his graduation. His mother passed away last December 2018 with tuberculosis, which is the number 1 killer among the Mangyans. He is just one of the current 12 Mangyans living with my family here in Balasan. There are already, more or less, 30 Mangyans who had traveled the dusty roads from Mayba to Balasan hoping to change their lives.”

Mangyan is the general name for the eight indigenous groups found on the island of Mindoro. Each group has their own tribal name, language, and customs. Their total population is estimated to be around 280,000, but official statistics are hard to conclude under the conditions of remote areas and secluded tribal groups.

Thus, formal education in the Mangyan community has not been an easy feat, especially to those struggling financially. Many Mangyan children also live in far-flung areas which often does not have formal schools at all, resulting in a higher illiteracy occurrence among them. Unschooled Mangyan people are further subject of marginalization and abuse, in the form of being underpaid for their work and services.

Due to this, netizens have praised Suday’s hard work, sending “congratulations” on the comments section of Sausa’s post. Others have also commended the original poster’s generosity for helping the Suday family.