Barangay Gigoso

At the middle part o the last hundredth years of the Spanish regime, Gigoso was still unsettled, while Balangiga and Guiuan were already an organized communities. It was the time when the Spaniards were recruiting Filipino males for a forced labor or to be a “guardia civil”.

Towards the end of the Spanish colonization of the Philippines. Gigoso was already a thriving Barangay. The People occupying the place designated Regino Talavera as a Tenyente Del Barrio or Barangay Lieutenant, and as a Barangay Lieutenant, he gathered the inhabitant of the place and Discussed the creation of Gigoso to become a barrio or barangay of Balangiga.

Since the plan of making a barangay needed donations of lands to be used as sites of the chapel and residential houses the people donated lands for the purposes. There they started build the chapel and the convinced the people to build their houses within the area.

Upon the completion of the chapel construction, they were able to have small Statues of San Juaquin and Sta. Ana making it the honored Patron saint of this place and from then on, the Barangay Fiesta Celebration is being held every third week of the month of August.

Regino Caibog, who was then appointed as the new Barangay Lieutenant followed by Restituto “Totong” Duran, were the ones responsible in the construction of School buildings, plaza, and cemetery.

The time came that Victorio Abit became the appointed Barangay Lieutenant, and then followed by Gervacio Abuda, Nicolas, Abayan, Timoteo Bagulaya, Maximo Eder, Andres Abuda, and Leon Paderan.

Barangay Gigoso was founded in the year 1906 and the first elected Barrio Captain who is responsible in the various improvements of this barangay like the building of the public schools, public plaza, and health centers, was Barrio captain Fernando L. Magno.

Pio Padel, the second elected Barangay Captain improved the place by constructing a bridge and it was Esteban B. Abuda who took his place. It was Barangay Captain Abuda’s time that the first Rural Health Midwife, Miss Lolita Colles, a native of Bato, eastern Samar, was assigned to render her services for four to five days a week.

Casiano P. Abit was the one instituted for the construction of spring water system development, which still exists up to the present. Unfortunately, he died on May of 1984 and the leadership of the barangay was left to his councilor, Cornelio E. Abit. Sr.

On May of 1988 another election was made and Zosimo M. Garado became the choice of the people for he got the highest number of votes of the magic eight in the Punong Barangay slot.

From May of 1994 to April of 2007, Daniel M. Abit came out victorious for a tree termer Punong Barangay, and such he is responsible for the many improvements like the construction of concrete Barangay Hall, improvement of Basketball Court, construction of concrete Day Care Center. He is also the one responsible in making the way of bringing electric power into the barangay.

The place is now considered a main line of globe communication of Globelines Incorporated after the cell site has been established in the year 2000 at Mt. Ponkay.

From October 29, 2007, Brgy. Gigoso was headed by Primitiva Abuda Servano the first woman elected as barangay Chairwoman ever since the barangay has been founded.

At present, this place is heade by Hon. Pio Magno Abuda, a strong and dynamic elected Brgy. Chairman. His political career was started as undefeated three – termer as Kagawad of SEAWALL, Tacloban City.