Tigwahanon never dreamed of becoming his tribe’s first doctor

DAVAO CITY — Joeffrey Mambucon is the 31-year-old Tigwahanon from San Fernando, Bukidnon, whose story went viral recently as he became the first from his tribe to earn a Doctor of Medicine degree at the De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute last June 30.

Mambucon, who is fondly known as “Otit” in their community, also received two special awards during his graduation – the Dean’s Special Award for Research and the Dean’s Special Award for Advocacy, Inclusiveness, and Equity as First Tigwahanon-Manobo LaSallian MD. The Tigwahanon is one of the seven tribes in Bukidnon.

Mambucon said he never dreamed of becoming a doctor.

“Kahinumdom ko nga si Papa moingon skwela mo kay kana ra among mapabilin sa inyoha. Apan wala sa amo hunahuna kung unsa ba naa sa skwelahan, naa ba ni padulngan ang tanan. For me like eskwela lang pero walay saktong deriksyon (I remember my father would tell us to go to school because it’s the only thing they can give us. But we never thought about what we can get in school, whether it will lead us somewhere. For me, I went to school but I didn’t have a clear direction),” he told the Manila Bulletin on Saturday, July 4.

He said their mother could not support them because it cost them money. He said his mother even told him to stop schooling because he was already being bullied in school for being a Lumad.

“‘Baho ka.’ ‘gisi imong sinina,’ ‘nitib ka taga-bukid’ (You stink, your clothes are ripped, you are a native from the mountains),” Mambucon said these were the hurtful words he heard in school as a kid.

But he said he persisted as he had already learned to appreciate learning. He said he had wanted to become a teacher because he idolized their teachers.

Growing up in Bukidnon

Mambucon was the third of six siblings, and grew up without any permanent address.

“Nidako ko nga walay klarong address tungod kay sa tribo kanunay mi gabalhin-balhin. Kung asa adunay pwede kapangitaan ug trabaho among pamilya. Mao pud tingali nga gubot kayo akung elementary days tungod kay lima ka skwelahan ako gibalhin balhinan (I grew up without a clear address because in our tribe we often transfer to other places. We go to a place where there is work for our family. Maybe that’s why my elementary days were chaotic because I had to transfer school five times),” Mambucon said.

Among the six, he was the only one who finished college. He has a younger sibling who is finishing an education degree at the University of Mindanao, and another sibling who finished a vocational course. He said they all finished high school, which was already considered a “victory for the tribe.”

Mambucon recalled that while he was growing up, they lived in the mountains in Molinga, Nakabuclad, in San Fernando town where they had no neighbors.

“Layo mi kanunay sa skwelahan labaw na katong elementary pa mi mga 1-2 oras gyud among lakawon gikan sa skwelahan (We always lived far from the school where we had to walk for one to two hours to get home),” he said.

The biggest problem they had as a child was the rainy season when they had to ask their teachers to allow them to go home early because they had to cross three rivers.

Responsible brother

As the elder brother, Mambucon looked after his younger siblings.

“Pagkahuman og tulog sa ako mga manghod, manikop na dayon ko ug isda sa sapa, manguha ug pako/ferns or udlot sa gabi, sag-ob na ug tubig ug makalung-ag na dayon pag-abot nila mama ug papa gikan panginadlaw (After my siblings wake up, I would catch fish in the river. I would gather pako (ferns) or gabi leaf buds, fetch water, and cook rice once my parents arrive from their work in the farm),” he said.

He said that, even as a kid, he was organized. He accompanied his father in cutting wood which they would sell. He said he worked on Saturdays and Sundays so that he would have money for school.

“Systematic na ko sauna pa mao pud siguro nga dali ra nako nahibal-an ang “organ system” sa tawo katong nagmedschool na ko (I was organized ever since, maybe that’s why it was easy for me to understand the organ system of the body when I was in medical

school),” he quipped.

Son of a chieftain

His father, Edgardo Mambucon, only finished first grade, but he was the tribal chieftain.

Mambucon said since his father was busy in attending to the problems of the whole tribe in San Fernando, it was his mother Julieta “Yuan” Solin-ay Mambucon who became their main provider.

Unfortunately, his father was killed in 2011.

“Usa siya ka biktima sa mga datu killings tungod sa pagsulod sa mining company sa among lugar (He was one of the victims of the killings of chieftains because of the entry of a mining company in our area),” he said.

Life as a nurse

Before he was accepted in medical school, Mambucon served as a Nurse 1 after passing the board exam in 2010. He finished Bachelor of Science in Nursing at the University of Mindanao in Davao City. A missionary from the Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF) told him that they would look for a sponsor to get Mambucon into a medical school. But Mambucon declined the offer.

“Gi-decline nako kay wala gyud koy kumpyansa sa ako kaugalingon ug labaw sa tanan gusto na ko makatabang sa pamilya kay gusto pud nako pahumanon ako manghod labaw na nga namatay na si Papa (I declined the offer because I didn’t have confidence, and most of all, I wanted to help my family because I wanted my siblings to finish school after the death of my father),” he said.

Mambucon served as a nurse at theBukidnon Provincial Hospital in San Fernando from 2011 to 2015. He said there he was one of only two nurses in the hospital. He served as the emergency room nurse,

delivery room nurse, and ward nurse at the same time.

The doctors in the hospital told him that he should be a doctor because the patients were mostly from his tribe. It was then that he decided to take the National Medical Admission Test. He had to take the exam twice before he was introduced to the Lasallian Brothers.

He said he would always be thankful to his friends, Ptr. Lloyd Estrada, Dahl Estrada for introducing him to De La Salle, and Christine Manalang for referring him to former Education Secretary JesliLapus. He said it was Lapus who recommended him to the Lasallian Brothers.

‘Dream big’

Mambucon is waiting for his internship at the DLSU-Medical Center which will start in August this year.

He said he hopes to join the Doctors to the Barrios program, and get his training as an Emergency Medicine Physician after three years.

As a message to his fellow Lumad, Mambucon encouraged them to have an open mind and to dream big.

“Sa mundo ngayon na puno nang paghihinagpis ang buong mundo palawakin natin ang isip natin. Mangarap ng matayog at huwag kalimutang manghingi ng lakas kay Magbabaya (God). Dahil sa kanya walang imposible. Kung nakaya ni kuya Otit na nagsimula na walang pangarap, alam ko ring kaya mong tuparin ang pangarap mo (In our world today that is full of suffering, we have to widen our understanding. Dream big and do not forget to ask strength from Magbabaya because in Him nothing is impossible. If Kuya Otit did it without a dream to start with, I know you, too, can achieve your dreams),” he said.