Crispin Chavez Cruz

Serving as Punong Barangay of Barangay Paralaya in Arayat, Pampanga, Crispin Chavez Cruz is currently in the 2023 - 2026 term. The Punong Barangay is the most senior elected official of a Philippine barangay and is responsible for the day-to-day administration of local services.

The Punong Barangay is the chief executive of the barangay, the smallest and most local unit of government in the Philippines. Duties under Section 389 of RA 7160 include enforcing barangay ordinances, organising and leading an emergency response team, calling and presiding over sessions of the Sangguniang Barangay, maintaining public order through the Lupong Tagapamayapa (peace council), and supervising the delivery of basic services to residents.

Barangay Paralaya is one of 30 barangays in the municipality of Arayat, in the province of Pampanga, in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Census of Population and Housing, Barangay Paralaya had a population of 2,026 residents — the constituency that Crispin serves as Punong Barangay. Pampanga is classified as a 1st by the Bureau of Local Government Finance.

Elected through the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections, Crispin Chavez Cruz is serving the current four-year term established under Republic Act No. 12232, which extended the barangay official's term from three years to four. The next BSKE will be held on Monday, November 2, 2026, following COMELEC Resolution No. 11191.

The Sangguniang Barangay — which Crispin Chavez Cruz leads — is the legislative body of a Philippine barangay. It passes barangay ordinances and resolutions, approves the annual barangay budget, and exercises oversight over the barangay's programmes and projects. Its composition includes the Punong Barangay, seven kagawads, the SK Chairperson, a Secretary, and a Treasurer, all accountable directly to residents.