Mama Ko Pulis: Sionnn on Having a Solo-Parent Mom
When you grow up with a police officer for a mother, authority doesn’t come in abstractions. It walks through the door in uniform, tired from duty, carrying the silent weight of service. For Twisted Minds’ Mid Laner Miguel Alcantara, better known as Sionnn, that uniform belonged to his mother.
“Only child po ako. Tapos isa lang po yung tumayong parent para sa akin, si Mama po,” Sionnn told ALL-STAR.
“Solo pong pinalaki ako ng Mama ko.”
But duty is never a nine-to-five job for a police officer. And with a higher rank comes a more demanding schedule.
According to Sionnn, his mother is a high-ranking police officer. “Mataas po posisyon niya, parang Senior Inspector po?”
“Wala po si Mama palagi sa bahay kasi pulis nga po siya, kaya mga pinsan ko yung palagi kong kasama sa bahay.”
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His cousins became his siblings. That was his childhood: not a nuclear family, but a patchwork of kin, stitched together by a woman who worked in uniform so her son could eat, live, and dream.
Sionnn remembers thinking, for a time, that he too would become a police officer. At a young age, Sionnn marvelled at his mother’s strength, which inspired him to be like her too.
But we asked him what he feels whenever the entire police force would face public outrage over news of alleged police brutality or corruption.
“Para sa akin po, hindi naman po kasi ganoon si Mama. Agree naman po ako sa statement na iyon na yung ibang mga pulis kurakot po. Pero alam ko sa sarili ko na ang Mama ko talaga, marangal pong nagtatrabaho para sa Pilipinas po.”
There was a look of slight indignation on Sionnn’s face, mixed with pride that his mother is not a bad cop.
“Noong bata pa po ako, gusto ko pong sumunod sa yapak ng nanay ko kasi ganoon ko po siya nakilala, kaya naisip ko rin maging pulis.”
But there was another dream tugging at him since boyhood: airplanes.
“Bata pa lang po ako, mahilig na po ako sa mga eroplano po. Lahat ng laruan ko puro eroplano po.”
He enrolled in aviation school, took his first year at Perpetual, and prepared for the day he would wear a pilot’s wings. His mother, who had given two decades to the police force, imagined her son rising higher, literally above the clouds.
Then, at 18, came the choice. Sionnn had to give up on one dream to pursue another.
“Pinapili po nila ako kung gusto ko mag OJT sa Aviation o mag MDL,” he recalls.
On one side was aviation, stable and noble, the dream his mother had for him. On the other was esports, untested, precarious, and still considered by many as a gamble rather than a career. The decision had to be made overnight: the start of his OJT coincided with the deadline of MDL’s roster lock.
Sionnn chose esports.
Being 18 is still a young age to be making decisions that will impact you for a lifetime. Did Sionnn feel scared of the weight of that moment?
“Napaisip po ako sa mararamdaman ng magulang ko kasi po, may chance po na mag-stop ako sa school para makapag MDL po. Pero mabuti po ay nag full support po sila sa akin para makapag MDL ako. Kasi iyon talaga ang isinisigaw ng puso ko, ang makapag MDL ako.”
Not that it was smooth. His first season was a string of losses.
“Noong first season namin sa MDL, di ba po super lose streak kami noon? … Doon po ako nagsimulang mangamba kung magtutuloy pa ba ako sa MDL,” Sionnn told ALL-STAR.
But he gave himself another chance. And slowly, the gamble paid off.
Today, he stands on the MPL stage, carrying not just his own dream but also his mother’s pride.
“Super proud po sila sa akin lalo na sa ipinapakita kong performance dito sa MPL po. Proud din po ako sa sarili ko dahil hindi ko rin po na-disappoint sila Mama. Iyon lang po kasi ang goal ko, ang hindi ko po ma-disappoint ang magulang ko.”
Still, he hasn’t abandoned the sky.
“Siguro po kapag hindi ko na po talaga kaya sumabay sa MPL, siguro babalik po talaga ako sa Aviation po para maipagpatuloy po ang pangarap ko na maging piloto.”
Sionnn smiles widely as he names Brazil and Argentina as places he dreams of flying to, as if to remind himself that his horizons remain wide.
“Gusto ko ma-experience ko rin po yung mga cultures ng iba’t ibang bansa!”
But for now, his battles are not in airports but arenas. But his flights could be charted across continents if he does well on MLBB’s new maps.
As Sionnn steps onto the MPL stage, he remembers his mother and how much he wants her to be proud of her only son.
Mama ko pulis. Mama ko malakas.
And for Sionnn, that is enough reason to keep playing.
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