Maria Clara Lobregat

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Maria Clara Rafols Lorenzo Lobregat (1921-2004) was a Filipino politician from Zamboanga City, where she served as its first woman mayor and also a representative to the Philippine Congress.

Maria Clara or "Caling" was born on April 26, 1921 in Zamboanga City as the second child of the five children of Don Pablo Lorenzo who was a mayor of Zamboanga City, a representative to the first Philippine Assembly and a delegate to the Philippine Constitutional Convention and Luisa Rafols of Cebu City. Caling spent her growing up years in the cities of Zamboanga, Cebu and Manila. She speaks Chavacano, Cebuano, English, Tagalog, and her native Spanish. She died on January 2, 2004.

Caling was present in Malacañang Palace on October 12, 1936 when President Manuel L. Quezon created and established the chartered city of Zamboanga through commonwealth.

Her son, Celso, became representative to the former lone district of Zamboanga City in 1998 and later a mayor in 2004 until the present.