Prospero Sybico Amatong (October 18, 1931 – May 16, 2009) was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. Amatong served as the Governor of

Davao del Norte Davao del Norte ( ceb, Amihanang Dabaw; tl, Hilagang Davao), officially the Province of Davao del Norte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Davao Region in Mindanao. Its capital and largest city is Tagum. The province also includes ...

from 1992 until 1998 and as a

Congressman A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...

in the

House of Representatives of the Philippines The House of Representatives of the Philippines ( fil, Kapulungan ng mga Kinatawan ng Pilipinas, italic=unset, ''Kamara'' or ''Kamara de Representantes'' from the Spanish language, Spanish word ''cámara'', meaning "chamber") is the lower house ...

from 1998 until 2007. He also served as interim governor of

Compostela Valley Davao de Oro, officially the Province of Davao de Oro ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Davao de Oro; tgl, Lalawigan ng Davao de Oro), is a province in the Philippines located in the Davao Region in Mindanao. Its capital is Nabunturan. It used to be part of ...

upon its creation.

Early years

Prospero Sybico Amatong was born in

Dipolog Dipolog, officially the City of Dipolog ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Dipolog; Subanen: ''Gembagel G'benwa Dipuleg/Bagbenwa Dipuleg''; Chavacano: ''Ciudad de Dipolog''; fil, Lungsod ng Dipolog), is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province ...

, Province of Zamboanga, on October 18, 1931, to Amando Borja Amatong and Felicidad Mabanag Sybico who were founders of

Andres Bonifacio College Andres Bonifacio College (ABCollege or ABC) is a community college institution in the Philippines. Its campus is located at College Park, Brgy. Miputak, Dipolog. ABCollege offers course programs from kindergarten to postgraduate levels. Alumni an ...

. He earned his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...

. He moved to Nabunturan in 1960, where he taught at Assumption College from 1960 until 1971.

Political career

Prospero's career in politics began in 1963 with his election as a Nabunturan

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

member. He was elected the Mayor of

Nabunturan Nabunturan, officially the Municipality of Nabunturan ( ceb, Lungsod sa Nabunturan; tl, Bayan ng Nabunturan), is a 1st class municipality and capital of the province of Davao de Oro, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

in 1972, an office he held for 14 years. He also served as the mayor of New Corella early in his career. Amatong was elected the Governor of

, which consisted of 21 towns, in 1992. As governor, Amatong spearheaded the creation of a new province

, which consists eleven

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

which were formerly part of Davao del Norte. Amatong became the

interim An interim is a period of temporary pause or change in a sequence of events, or a temporary state, and is often applied to transitional political entities. Interim may also refer to: Temporary organizational arrangements (general concept) *Provis ...

governor of the newly created

province for three months in 1998. He was later elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

, representing Compostela Valley's second congressional district as a congressman. Amatong remained in Congress until his retirement in 2007. His son, Rep. Rommel Amatong, was elected as his successor in the district in 2007. Throughout his long political career, no complaints were ever filed against him by the

Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

. Politicians from both Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley continued to consult Amatong following his retirement, earning him the nickname as the "grand old man" of Davao politics.

Personal life

Prospero Amatong suffered a fall in a

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

park in May 2009 while on vacation with his wife, Luz, their children and other family members. He was hospitalized with head injuries, leaving him in a

coma A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light, or sound, lacks a normal wake-sleep cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. Coma patients exhi ...

. Amatong died in a New York City hospital on May 16, 2009, at the age of 77. His body was flown back to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

for burial. Tributes poured in following news of Amatong's unexpected death. Compostela Valley Governor Arturo Uy called Amatong, "...exceptional as a leader, a master politician. I would say no one could ever duplicate his performance in our lifetime. He is the real Mr. Service." Laak Mayor Reynaldo Navarro referred to Amatong as, "a

legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...

, a real

champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...

who has never tasted defeat." Former Davao del Norte Vice Governor Victorio Suaybaguio Jr., a friend of Amatong during his governorship, spoke of him, "am saddened by the death of a great man whose life was dedicated to mankind. It's a loss to all of us. My prayers to the bereaved family. Farewell my brother." Davao del Norte Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario also sent condolences to Amatong's family.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amatong, Prospero

Prospero Prospero ( ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''. Prospero is the rightful Duke of Milan, whose usurping brother, Antonio, had put him (with his three-year-old daughter, Miranda) to sea ...

1931 births 2009 deaths People from Dipolog Governors of Davao de Oro Governors of Davao del Norte Mayors of places in Davao de Oro Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Davao de Oro Accidental deaths from falls Accidental deaths in New York (state)