ILIGAN CITY?The controversy that Mayor Nasser Pangandaman Jr. of Masiu, Lanao del Sur finds himself in due to his involvement in a golf course brawl in Antipolo City betrays the perceived ?sober image? of his family.

Before the brawl, the name Pangandaman was associated with a Cabinet member or with a diplomat-turned-governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

The Pangandamans have Masiu as their political bailiwick, maintaining control of top posts. The family is a force to reckon with by politicos wanting to capture provincial and congressional seats.

The young Nasser himself assumed the mayoralty from a relative ?by arrangement,? according to a source. His mother is Bai Yasmin Pacasum, who belongs to a prominent political clan in Lanao del Sur province.

Although the Pangandamans are known to maintain a coterie of bodyguards as what political families of their stature customarily do, residents of Lanao del Sur scarcely remember instances in which they acted in a warlord-like manner supposedly to gain respect.

The more famous Pangandamans earned public respect through achievements in public service.

Cabinet member

Nasser Sr., who is trained in conciliation and mediation, has the distinction of being the only Muslim member of the Cabinet of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo when he became officer-in-charge of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in 2005.

He was appointed agrarian reform secretary in June 2007.

At the helm of the DAR, the elder Nasser presided over the scrapping of the controversial Hacienda Luisita stock distribution option (SDO), which pitted the agency against the influential Cojuangco family.

His action stemmed from a petition signed by some 8,000 farm workers seeking actual distribution of the Hacienda property under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). The workers cited their worsening economic situation 16 years into the SDO scheme.

Born in Marawi City, Nasser joined DAR in 2002 as undersecretary for Mindanao Affairs. Before this, he was in the private sector. This was interrupted by some three years of staff work with his father Lininding, who served as ARMM governor from 1993 to 1996.

Nasser left his ARMM job and ran for governor of Lanao del Sur in 1995. His defeat led him back to the private sector.

While with DAR, he is also involved in the peace talks between the national government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)?first as member of the government?s technical committee on territory, and then as member of its panel.

?Old man? Pangandaman

The family?s political clout is largely attributed to Lininding, whom locals refer to as ?ang matanda (the old man),? an honorific title.

A lawyer by profession, Lininding was among the Muslim leaders, who worked closely with then President Ferdinand Marcos in the 1970s to seek solutions to the Moro secessionist problem in Mindanao.

He was once on the board of trustees of the Mindanao State University (MSU), the country?s second largest state-funded educational institution. It was created partly to promote inter-cultural dialogue among the island?s different ethnic groups.

Tripoli agreement

As a diplomat, Lininding figured prominently in Marcos? initiatives to win over the Islamic states in the 1970s. He was assistant minister of foreign affairs for Middle East and African Affairs and had a stint as ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

He was part of the government team in the Libya-facilitated talks with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) under the auspices of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). The process led to the crafting and signing of the Tripoli Agreement of 1976.

With Lininding then were Ambassador Pacifico Castro, Commissioner Simeon Datumanong, and Col. Eduardo Ermita, as members; and Defense Undersecretary Carmelo Barbero as chair. Their MNLF counterparts included Hashim Salamat, who became chair of the MILF.

Lake Lanao road

In 1993, President Fidel Ramos convinced Lininding to come out of retirement to run for ARMM governor. He handily won with the support of the dominant administration party Lakas-NUCD.

As ARMM governor, he was credited with presiding over infrastructure development in Lanao del Sur. It was he who initiated the Lake Lanao circumferential road project.

The road development brought many poor communities like Masiu closer to Marawi, the political and economic center, which could be reached before by boat across the lake.

Sobriety and diplomacy

Indeed, the more famous Pangandamans were known for their sobriety and diplomacy.

With the way he conducted himself on the Valley Golf and Country Club course on Dec. 26 as reported by the media, Nasser Jr. appears to be not a chip off the old block.

Pampanga fishpond owner Delfin Dela Paz and his 14-year-old son Bino accused two sons of the agrarian secretary, including the mayor, and their companions of beating them in a tee house after an altercation on the golf course.

The agrarian secretary has apologized for the incident, but he said that the apology did not mean an admission that his sons started the fight.