Merlinda Esperanza Pacilan LINDA

As Punong Barangay of Barangay Hinablayan Pob., Merlinda Esperanza Pacilan LINDA presides over the Sangguniang Barangay of the barangay in Palompon, Leyte, serving the 2023 - 2026 term. The Punong Barangay is a nationally recognised local government position under the Local Government Code of 1991 (Republic Act No. 7160).

As the head of the smallest tier of Philippine local government, the Punong Barangay is responsible for everything from maintaining peace and order within the barangay to supervising the Barangay Development Plan, enforcing national and local laws within the barangay boundaries, and representing residents in the wider city or municipal government. The position is held for a four-year term under Republic Act No. 12232.

Barangay Hinablayan Pob. is one of 50 barangays in the municipality of Palompon, in the province of Leyte, in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Census of Population and Housing, Barangay Hinablayan Pob. had a population of 362 residents — the constituency that Merlinda serves as Punong Barangay. Leyte is classified as a 1st by the Bureau of Local Government Finance.

Elected through the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections, Merlinda Esperanza Pacilan LINDA 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 Merlinda Esperanza Pacilan LINDA 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.