Maria Nena Santoceldes Castillon

Serving as Punong Barangay of Barangay Poblacion III in Clarin, Misamis Occidental, Maria Nena Santoceldes Castillon 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.

Under the Local Government Code of 1991, the Punong Barangay leads the Sangguniang Barangay, signs ordinances and resolutions, represents the barangay in transactions with other government units, administers the barangay budget and appropriations, and oversees the Lupong Tagapamayapa that handles amicable settlement of disputes at the barangay level. The office is the most directly accountable elected position in the Philippine government.

Barangay Poblacion III is one of 29 barangays in the municipality of Clarin, in the province of Misamis Occidental, in the Northern Mindanao region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Census of Population and Housing, Barangay Poblacion III had a population of 1,633 residents — the constituency that Maria serves as Punong Barangay. Misamis Occidental is classified as a 2nd by the Bureau of Local Government Finance.

Elected through the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections, Maria Nena Santoceldes Castillon 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.

A Philippine barangay's Sangguniang Barangay is composed of one Punong Barangay, seven Sangguniang Barangay Members (kagawads), a Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) Chairperson representing the youth sector, a Barangay Secretary, and a Barangay Treasurer. Together, these officials administer the smallest unit of Philippine local government and deliver frontline services — from barangay clearance issuance to peace and order, from public health assistance to the barangay's share of the Internal Revenue Allotment.