Saturday, December 21, 2019

Eulogy for Pidyong



Pidyong is the neighborhood’s most sought-after errand boy then and before his death. Everybody from all walks of life in old San Jose distinguishes the man. Well, every famous individual deserves a eulogy.

A regular feature in every nook of Barangay 6, he was a mysterious man.  So visible and yet only few knows his personal details. We do not know who and where are his biological parents  or, did he just popped out of a wine bottle like a genie and live among us?

Pidyong cleans the mess in the neighborhood for a dime or two or a plate of food or a packet of snacks. He is everybody’s general factotum. He wakes up early in the morning to ask for a cup of strong coffee before he face another grind of the day. He cleans for a living but he seldom clean himself. He sleeps everywhere each time he is dead drunk, with his murky clothes, dirt-filled slippers and alcohol and tobacco smelling breath. He, to those who travelled with him in this life, even those who died ahead of him and those who are still living, are endeared by him. He may have forgotten his parents but not her elementary grade classmates. All of them. I tell you, Pidyong is not your typical village bum. His smile and grin  are equally mysterious but real. He always talk nonsense from his mind but his laughter is sincere. Unlike many of us.

Pidyong is not only the favorite task boy of San Jose. He is the San Jose of yore. He witnessed how this humble little town of our birth became what it is today. Perhaps he also wept with the victims of the Roda Gasoline Station's burning in May 24, 1985. Who knows, maybe in his teens, he also lamented with the families of prominent residents, 26 of them, who died on that fatal Philippine Airlines’ DC3 Flight No. 785 crash happened in June 29, 1966. In our every success as a community, Pidyong celebrates with us, possibly, over swigs of gin and clouds of cigarette smoke. He is with us, as a community, in our ups and downs, as a bodyguard, helper, chaperone, rolled into one.

His elementary classmate Asuncion “Ciony” Pabellano (nee Rodil) remember him as lonely pupil going to San Jose Pilot Elementary School donning an immaculate white and neatly-ironed polo. His mother is good at washing and keeping clothes clean, says Ate Ciony. He is often bullied by some of their classmates because of his not so normal mental state.

He was one of the few men who calls the congresswoman by his first name though he always misprounounces it. The lady solon, Pidyong’s classmate in elementary grade, reportedly shouldered financial burdens when her childhood friend was hospitalized and even beyond that. He was a chain smoker and a heavy drinker so what one would expect?

Elpidio “Pidyong” Tenoco passed away 19th of December, 2019 and his remains lies at St. Peter Chapel in Barangay 6, San Jose, Occidental Mindoro and scheduled to be interred on Monday, December 23, 2019.

We do not know exactly his age, or any concrete facts about him at all. None of us could say about his family origins but it does not matter, our collective origins were partly his. He likes to tell stories about his classmates. Telling stories about its people is one of the best ways to show that we are proud of our hometown. Actually, no one greatly miss his or her hometown more than its people especially when somebody is gone.

Only one thing is important: he lived among us till his final breath. He once touched our lives. We have lasting memories about him.

Be free from handyman’s job and be at peace with your True Master in your final, eternal home, Pidyong.

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(Photo from Ciony Pabellano’s Facebook Account)








Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Hosting of 2020 Palaro in OCM in peril?



With profound anticipation of her province’s hosting of the 2020 Palarong Pambansa, Occidental Mindoro lone district Rep. Josephine Y. Ramirez-Sato said last May 4, 2019 in Davao City, “Let us work hand in hand to ensure our successful hosting of the 2020 Palarong Pambansa.  Sama-sama po natin ipamalas ang mainit na pagtanggap sa ating mga manlalaro at ipakita po natin ang nakabibighaning kagandahan ng ating lalawigan.” The holding of the national game here is indeed historic since never in young history of our province we did host an event of this magnitude.

Since then, all of us waited for this event, government offices from the Department of Education (DepEd) to LGUs, including our homegrown entrepreneurs and business people, those in the tourism sector, practically all of us are excited to be at the limelight of this huge national event. Of course not to be counted out are our athletes, their coaches and trainers and the rest of our sporting contingents and the sports enthusiasts like this lowly scribe.

All is set and ready until Tropical Storm Tisoy (Kammuri) spoiled everything for it leaves a track of damage in the province. Occidental Mindoro or the whole MIMAROPA region for that matter is an agricultural area. As per estimate of the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), 1,528 farmers and a total of 2,639.90 hectares of farm land have been affected, with a total estimated value of PhP 156,524,438.50. Not comprised here is the damage brought to government facilities, roads and bridges, properties, private buildings and edifices, among others. With this situation of wreckage and anxiety, it is but proper to suspend such event.

This quandary held our Palarong Pambansa at the so-called trellis of uncertainty or in the vernacular, “balag ng alanganin.” Just this week, Rep. Sato, Gov. Eduardo B. Gadiano and Vice-Governor Peter J. Alfaro went to Education Sec. Leonor M. Briones and had a meeting on the matter. As of post time, no official announcement yet coming from the DepEd and the PGO on the province’s hosting of the event that has legal basis in Sec. 19 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution Article XIV. Further, Republic Act No. 10588 or the Act Institutionalizing the Conduct of the Palarong Pambansa was approved towards this end. 

In retrospect, this annual multi-sport event involving student-athletes from 17 regions of the Philippines started in 1948. The Palaro, as we all know, is organized and governed by the DepEd. The education department has the first and last say in this respect, specifically its National Palaro Board.

The first national competition was held in Manila in 1948 and formerly called Bureau of Public Schools-Interscholastic Athletics Association Games or BPISAA. But in 1957, it was cancelled due to the tragic death of President Ramon Magsaysay who died in a plane crash in the 17th of March that year. The game was again cancelled in 1972 when President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared the oppressive Martial Law. Between 1984 and 1987 the event again was cancelled due to the People Power Revolution.

In 2003, due to growing security problem, the May 4-11 staging of the Palarong Pambansa in Tubod, Lanao del Norte was postponed because, according to then Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye, “[I]t will be too difficult for us to let our players go there in a situation like this," he said referring to the attack made by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels that time where 16 persons were killed and 20 others injured. Instead of May 4 to 11, the Palaro was moved to Oct. 25 to 29 of that same year. It was the time of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Sablayan’s hosting of MIMAROPA-RAA, the regional game, in 2020 will not also happen because of the havoc and aftermath of Tisoy, the LGU reasoned out. Earlier, Mayor Andres D. Dangeros sent a letter addressed to the education department's regional office signifying its withdrawal from hosting the sporting meet right after TS Tisoy left the PAR. I have heard from the grapevine that the province of Romblon agreed to take the cudgels as pinch-hitter for Occidental Mindoro to host the event. Romblon, infact, was also damaged by said typhoon. If Sablayan did not abruptly withdraw, the DepEd and/or the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) might come to the rescue at the end of the day. Well, who am I to question the wisdom of our leaders or duty-bearers? I respect their decision no matter what.

Without any official pronouncement as of yet from the National Palaro Board, the anticipating populace is facing the wall, waiting if the 2020 Palarong Pambansa will be transfered, postponed, cancelled or would push through as planned, as scheduled. 

Hope it will not be scrapped in totality or held in another province in the next few months, say, towards the end of 2020. If TS Tisoy is the sole culprit, I hope that it must only be postponed and not cancelled. Like in 2003 in Tubod, I pray this will push through ultimately sometime late next year.

Rep. Sato in Davao City last May also said that, “Hosting such national event is an honor for Occidental Mindoro. This way, we can showcase our province’s potentials, commerce and industry, our beautiful places and tourist spots, our products and our people.” True enough, let us hold it here, re-schedule it and prove that we, the people of Occidental Mindoro, can overcome and easily recover and make progress from devastation brought about by TS Tisoy, that we can surpass any challenges that hinders along our path as a struggling community. As community of heroes.

That is the fighting spirit we must show the world...

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References:

Photo Credit: Philippine Information Agency (PIA)


Friday, November 22, 2019

They are the Champions



The Sablayan team has been enjoying their crown as queens of the Palarong Panlalawigan secondary girls’ basketball for half a decade now. The town hosts the sports festival held November 18 to 22, 2019.

The 2019 batch is led by their main skipper Marigel Ann J. Arbatin, 16, a resident of Barangay Ligaya and wearing jersey number 1. Arbatin, a senior high school student of Sablayan National Comprehensive High School or SABNAHIS taking up Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) Strand is into basketball since 2015 when she and her family moved from Quezon City to their present abode. Originally an elementary sprinter from Olive Grove School, Arbatin looks forward to join the big league in the future like Samantha Harada of National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs who also hails from Ligaya. Marigel, along with Agnes Genata, Kristin Joy Baquirin and Nica Sibugan are regular features in HS women’s basketball scene in Occidental Mindoro.

The team won all of their games, reason why they are declared as the 2019 Provincial Meet champions courtesy of, among other players, Vanessa Tumaca’s lethal running jump shots. Manning, I mean taking, the center position is Novie Jane Reyes, the tallest gal in the line-up who first tried volleyball but seeing her potentials in heft and height, her coach then preferred her to fill the gap in the basketball roster.

Reyes roots for Candace Parker who plays for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Parker was the first overall pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft. This is Reyes’ first time to join the provincial sports meet. Reyes has great potential in the game if led to the right path of the sport.

A total of 8 lady cagers from Sablayan will be in Team Occidental Mindoro in next year’s MIMAROPA-RAA Meet right here in the province. Arbatin, Reyes, Genata, Baquirin and Sibugan will be joined by Patrice Robles, Evelyn De Dios and Elaine Magalong. Other members of the champion lady team are Princess Sulite and J-Zel Heart Sampaga. They are under the tutelage of Coach Ric Casuncad. But in the last 4 years, they were shaped into dribbing and shooting machines by Mr. Monique Benedicto, this year’s head of delegation for the secondary level in the municipality.

I am a Larry Bird fan and allow me to “tweet” this: “A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals,” says Larry. Sablayan again emerged as the meet's over-all champion, back-to-back.

Champions are measured by championships and that is always the name of the game.

Congratulations, young ladies…

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(Photo: Anjhun Manzano)






Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Manny Meets a Mangyan



Manny Pacquiao’s boxing unifies Filipinos no doubt. Mangyans coming from the boondocks go down to town proper to watch him fight. In San Jose, they troop to venues whenever Pac-Man’s bouts were featured for free on screen. 

Though the Mangyans do not interact with the lowlanders, they stay quietly in one nook of the area watching the bout unobtrusively. Councilor Ruben C. Aldaba is the Indigenous People’s Mandatory Representative (IPMR) to the Sangguniang Bayan (SB) of Sablayan in Occidental Mindoro, just like his people back in Pandalagan, their indigenous cultural community, the November 4 meeting with the people’s champ is to be treasured for such a gathering is one in a million.

The Alangan Mangyan IPMR admires Manny Pacquiao, the boxer. Senator Pacquiao asked Councilor Aldaba about the road condition in the province and the 12-time world title winner in 8 weight divisions was elated when the IP legislator told him that the road is now okay. Pacquiao said something about his first professional fight in the acclaimed Boxing Mecca of Occidental Mindoro, the Municipality of Sablayan. Aldaba requested for a photo opportunity and Pacquaio agreed, therefore, the photo above.

Allow me to take this opportunity to say something about the Alangan, the ethno-linguistic group of Mangyans where Ruben Aldaba belongs. The Alangan tribe is one of the 8 Mangyan ethnic groups. They live in the wide area around Mt. Halcon and nearby areas. The sub-tribe occupies the northern part of Occidental and Oriental Mindoro.

The economic life of the Alangans is primarily based on the upland agriculture or commonly known as the kaingin system. Alangan Mangyans practice swidden farming, which consists of eleven stages. Two of them are the firebreak-making (agait) and the fallowing (agpagamas). A firebreak is made so the fire will not go beyond the swidden site where the vegetation is thoroughly dry and ready for burning. Two years after clearing, cultivation of the swidden is normally stopped and the site is allowed to revert back to forest (Quiaoit, 1997). Contrary to some misconceptions, the indigenous and old Alangan way of doing the kaingin is sustainable and ecologically friendly. 

Mangyans are also known for betel nut chewing (also known as ―nganga) (Leykamm, 1979). They chew the betel nut with great fervor from morning to night because this makes them not to feel hungry. This is poverty as experienced by our IPs.

As a child, Manny Pacquiao’s family was so poor that he had to drop out of school at age 14 and move to Manila in hopes of making money to support his mother and five siblings. He spent time living on the streets, but eventually found his way onto the Philippine national amateur boxing team. Within two years he won his first two professional fights in Sablayan and the rest is history.

IPMR Ruben and all his Alangan brethren know that Pacquiao is a sort of a national hero, worth millions, and arguably the most famous Filipino in the world. With regards to poverty the SenaPac has this to say: "Poverty does not make me angry," he said. "But it makes me feel bad inside, and I want to help. I want the people of the Philippines to be happy, even if they have nothing. Even if they can just have enough to eat food three times a day." Lest we forget too that the Mangyans are the poorest of the poor among us, people of the island of Mindoro. They eat only once or at times, two times a day.

Pacquiao, the boxer (not the politician) gave the Filipino people a reason to keep hoping, dreaming and working hard. That day, Pacquiao’s hardened knuckles and Aldaba’s calloused hand clasped…

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Photo : Jasper H. Francisco

References:





Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Of Marffin and Risa and the SOGIE Bill



It was a close encounter between Municipal SK Federation President Marffin Bayog Dulay and Senator Ana Theresia "Risa" Navarro Hontiveros-Baraquel.

The lady solon, in the middle of the opening handshake, solicited the support of the ex-officio Sangguniang Bayan member and simultaneously serving as the Sangguniang Kabataan Chairperson of Barangay Poblacion in Sablayan on the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill but the latter didn’t say a word about it. All the senator got is a smile. The visiting local officials exchanged pleasantries with her before the official business meeting went on.

Aside from SB Dulay, present in the meeting with Senator Hontiveros last November 4, 2019 are SBs Bong V. Urieta, Jun-Jun C. Ventura, Greg A. Villar, Obet Z. Dawates, Jaebee A. Dawates, Salvy U. de Vera, Mc. King O. Legaspi, Ruben C. Aldaba, and Vice-Mayor Bong Marquez.

The eldest child of Rufino Dulay and Mary Bayog who was born on October 9, 1996, though member of the LGBTQIA+ community is critical of the bill. SB Dulay, being a devout Catholic, believes that just like another individual human being, any human condition is an instrument for spiritual renewal and salvation. “Regardless of our sex or gender, each of us is called to fulfill God’s will in our lives,” says the young dreamer who believes in the value of divine intervention who calls for a PUSH (Pray Until Something Happens). By the way, SB Dulay is a product of a Catholic school. The SK Fed prexy graduated at Colegio de San Sebastian with the degree of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with various recognition in academic and non-academic areas.

SB Marffin is an active member and leader of different youth organizations that showcases the participation and involvement of youth in a more productive and inclusive venues and served as Presiding Officer of Local Youth Development Council (LYDC) and an enthusiastic member of the Gender and Development Focal Point System, Municipal Peace and Order Council, Municipal Anti-Drug Abuse Council, Municipal Advisory Council of PNP in Sablayan. On the other hand, Hontiveros is the chairperson of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality, which conducts the hearings on the SOGIE bill.

Senator Hontiveros believes that her bill is still the best policy tool to protect members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community from discrimination, harassment, and violence. Nonetheless, the senator emphasized from the start that her bill will “take into consideration religious and faith-based sensitivities.”

In May 2019, the SOGIE Equality Bill officially became the longest-running bill under the Senate interpellation period in Philippine history. The bill has become one of the slowest-moving bills in the country's history. 


According to SB Dulay, SOGIE Equality Bill is not the ultimate solution to gender inequality and giving extra rights for the LGBTQIA+ is something to study much further. Anti-discrimination laws are intact and they are enough.

During a tête-à-tête with this lowly blogger, Marffin said that self-respect must come first before you expect respect from others. The youth leader from Sablayan is greatly dismayed when LGBTQIA+ community members fight each other for there are a lot of them are also against the proposed legislation.

“Ang babae kahit anong gawin, babae yan. Ganun din ang lalaki. Kung ikaw ay bakla, lalaki ka pa rin, Kung ikaw ay tomboy, babae ka pa rin. Yan ang masakit na katotohanan. Ngunit kaakibat niyan, isipin mo na lang bakit ka nilikha bilang ikaw. Dahil lahat tayo ay may misyon sa ating buhay, inilagay ka lang sa ganyang pangangatawan dahil diyan mo magagampanan ang misyon mo sa mundo,” says the youth leader who states further that, “Hindi masama ang magmahal ng kapwa mo lalaki o babae. Ang masama ay habang nag mamahalan kayo ay may natatapakan kayong kapwa ninyo.”


But both Hontiveros and Dulay, despite of their differences on the SOGIE issue, are against any form of discrimination and they want the best for their constituents. They want to preserve values and the Filipino family through their respective official capacity at present…

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(Photo: Jasper H. Francisco)



Monday, October 14, 2019

Sablayan SB First 100 Days: Pioneers & Incumbents*


With the opening of our Photo Exhibition a while ago and the gallery walk, we are going to observe and commemorate the first 100 days of office of each Sangguniang Bayan. With this historical-cultural-political lookback using photo gallery as medium, we at the Office of the Vice-Mayor and the Sangguniang Bayan are optimistic that this would serve the purpose of commending and acknowledging the past and present local legislators and vice-mayors of Sablayan.

My assignment today is to give you a foreword for this activity.

We call this Pioneers and Incumbents: A Photo Exhibition of Historical Reminiscences of Past and Present Legislators and State of First 100 Days’ of Local Legislation Address of Vice-Mayor Walter B. Marquez.

But before everything else, please be reminded that the 100-days concept is believed to have its roots in France, where the concept of “Cent Jours” (Hundred Days) refers to the period of 1815 when King Louis XVIII regained the throne.

Later in America, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s extraordinary productivity translated into enormous popularity, and he set a first 100-day standard against which all future U.S. presidents would be measured. This tradition extends in US allied countries like the Philippines and it transcends down to its local governments, and the rest is history, so to speak.

This event coincidentally falls in the celebration of the 28th Local Government Code anniversary as per Presidential Proclamation No. 63, series of 1992 declaring October as the Local Government Month, the second week of October as the Local Government Week and the 10th day of October as the Local Government Day.

In our teaser and in the opening banner it is written:

This project is in no way a finished business.

This Photo Exhibit is a continuous historical search and requires a more thorough investigation in the future, specifically the part where we try our best to honor the pioneering legislators and vice-mayors of our beloved town of Sablayan.

The days from October 14, 2019 onwards, we will have thankful days of remembrance. We will be presenting you photographs and documents to recapture the moments of legislation and dedicated labor of our past and present legislators.

The long gone pioneer legislators and those who are still living lost every bit of their temporal comforts but never let their zeal to serve the people, through authoring local legislation, go in vain. We have moved a long way and have arrived at a time where we have been called to cultivate the qualities of gratitude and service and possess the gentle spirit of determination to hasten the work of Lawmaking.

The Spirit of the People of Sablayan is larger than Life, thus, the Theme: “Look Back as We Look Forward for Quality Policy Rules”.

The journey of this town leading to quality legislation may be long and hard, but we will never be alone.”

But this was more than a photo exhibition and bestowing of recognition to the “surviving”, living past vice-mayors of Sablayan. It has been a major awareness campaign to remember the life and works of our forebears in local legislation. Today we honor their achievements, their drive to succeed and their contributions to our town’s development and productivity. It is our aim to highlight the ability of these lawmakers who made both their public and private lives productive, relevant and meaningful.

But bear with us in our inconsistencies,-historically, grammatically, or otherwise. The typo errors, the overlooking of some details are ours alone. We will rectify them the soonest possible time.

We all should empowering our constituents beyond our first 100 days of office and beyond and give them importance. We should abide by this culture. This is a way of capacitating them and empowering the people. Our constituents cannot be outsiders forever. They are part and parcel of governance.

Their participation is what we all celebrate. Let us give them a warm round of applause.

These are the things that cannot be captured in any photo of whatever size and be accommodated in any show room or exhibition space, as we have stressed in our opening banner.

Thank you very much and we wish this exhibition be a complete success.

Magandang araw po sa inyong lahat!

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(Introduction to the Activity Speech during A Photo Exhibition of Historical Reminiscences of Past and Present Legislators and State of First 100 Days’ of Local Legislation Address of Vice-Mayor Walter B. Marquez, 14 October 2019; 2nd Floor Legislative Building, Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro)


               


Friday, October 11, 2019

Happy 10th Year in the Embrace of Our Lady



Frt. Reymond Barrales- Mulingbayan of Our Lady of the Pillar Parish will celebrate his 10th anniversary of sacerdotal ordination tomorrow, Saturday, October 12, 2019. This Mindoro blogger is happy because this young clergy reached this far wearing the cloth.

Fr. Ymon’s ordination exactly a decade ago coincided with the 25th founding anniversary or Silver Jubilee of our Vicariate’s Saint Joseph College Seminary (SJCS). Two years later, the SJCS was padlocked due to reasons that God only knows. 

Seminaries are important and Pope Pius XII in his encyclical “Ad Cathoici Sacerdotii” has this reminder to local ordinaries: “The seminary is and should be the apple of your eye …. [I]t is and should be the chief object of your solicitude.” Without seminaries, no priests like Fr. Ymon can be ordained!

Father Ymon, now 39, is the the second child in a brood of four of Cleta Barrales, my second cousin from maternal side, and Reynaldo Mulingbayan who are both active members of various religious organizations and ministries in their parish. Father Mulingbayan finished his Elementary in Mamburao Central School, Secondary Education in West Mindoro Academy or WEMA. In college, he studied at Christ the King Minor Seminary in Quezon City and Divine Word School of Theology in Tagaytay City.

My favorite definition of what a priest is came from Saint Pope John Paul II who once wrote that a priest is “the living and transparent image of Christ.” The man, who is a priest, is chosen and consecrated by God to make the love of Christ present in the world. At his ordination, the man who is ordained a priest is configured to Jesus Christ, the true High Priest, in a very special way. On his ordination day, a man becomes a priest in his very being. From that day, his deepest identity is that he is a priest; a priest forever. That is what those who love him must pray for Fr. Munding (AKA Fr. Ymon).

Like Prophet Isaiah, Fr. Ymon was sent to give fresh vision and hope to a people in suffering, anguish and pain. He at present is assigned parish priest of St. Joseph the Foster Parent Parish in Central, San Jose after having served in San Raphael Parish in Abra de Ilog and other assignments that I cannot now recall. Like Prophet Isaiah, that is also the task of the priest-prophet in the new exile, in every parish where the priest is assigned.

Priests are here not to fix the world or anything or anybody in it all by themselves. They are not solo parents in this wayward, dirty home called “Pilipinas” with the most dangerous, indecent and murky firstborns live. You are not alone because God is with you. Since you took your vows ten years ago, you are one with the Lord in your vocation and mission and pastoral ministry.

Priests are not like a certain president of a country or a despot who sees everything as objects to be dominated and controlled. Priesthood is about simple, humble service. It is about tenderness and compassion rather than rigidity and arrogance. Over and above, the gift you received some 10 years ago today was given so that through you, the Lord can shine forth. 

Our prayers for Fr. Reymond Mulingbayan for he entrusted his vocation to the care of the Nuestra Senora Del Pilar, the patron of Mamburao, his place of birth. 

Aside from Fr. Ymon's priestly anniversary, tomorrow is also the town's fiesta celebration. If I may add some trivia, also in October 12, 1492, feast day of Our Lady of the Pillar, Christopher Colombus first sighted American land and the first Mass in the Americas was celebrated. Our Lady of the Pillar, before that Columbus' event, is considered as the first Marian apparition in history. It was when St. James the Apostle, brother of St. John the Evangelist, witnessed Our Lady appeared standing on a pillar at the bank of the river of Ebro in Saragossa, Spain in 40 AD. "E, ano ngayon?," one may ask. Wala lang. Mema lang

Happy fiesta Mamburao and congratulations Fr. Ymon! ...

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Thursday, October 10, 2019

Convocation of PUP Sablayan Branch


Thank you for considering us as part of your 9th founding anniversary celebration with the theme, “Pagsusulong, Pagtutulungan, Pagsusumikap nang Sama-Sama para sa Matatag na Unibersidad”. It is such a privilege to give you a Convocation Speech in behalf of my immediate superior, my principal, Vice-Mayor Walter “Bong” B. Marquez.

Technically, to render convocation speech is a sort of giving or sharing advice. This is the task you gave to the good vice-mayor who cannot be with us tonight due to an official function he is attending in Manila today. He is part of the Vice-Mayors’ League of the Philippines which is, as I speak now, is having a national election.   

Let us break down the 3 important words in your theme:

Theme 1 : Pagsulong (Moving Forward).

Last May 8, 2019, Ricky Lee, the award-winning Filipino writer, journalist, novelist, and playwright, speaking for the graduation rite of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) told his audience:  “Makisangkot ka! Don't be selfish. Give your life to others, even if just sometimes.” He said too, “Go to the mines, the mountains, the children and the elderly. Ask what you can help with.” Needless to say, hindi tayo magkaka-iwan ng marka kapag hindi tayo umiimik. Magkakaroon lamang ng tunay na kabuluhan sa buhay, sa gawain at anumang dimensyon ng pag-iral ay sa PAGSULONG na naglilingkod sa kapwa. We must be involved and move forward. Or move on, as the millennials would say.

The only thing we can do is to move forward. Do not let the situation crush you. Keep them going and damn the obstacles and make one tiny little step after another. It is difficult after some time you’ll notice that by taking one step after another, you’ll eventually overcome the struggle. We can move on, we must move on.

Theme 2 : Pagtutulungan (Cooperation).

Cooperation NOT Competition is the game’s name. It’s long been declared that the nature of life is based on survival of the fittest. History also tells us that people must constantly compete to survive. In some ways its rings true. But what is more powerful than competition that incorporates cooperation? It’s Love and Hope.

Consider this: love is more powerful than hate. Hope is more powerful than fear. And if we believe in love and hope, then we believe in the power of cooperation. We are not animals. We are their highest form. Cooperation is the true natural state of human beings.

As competing students you, as dictated by the system, develop antagonistic behavior. We want to know that we matter, that we are valuable part of your school that we are connected with the people upon whom they rely for nurturing. 

Cooperation is anything and everything that helps us feel connected and part of something meaningful. It can be a thought, a touch, a glance, an act, a memory. There are infinite ways of being in this world.

Denice Dare, whom she calls herself a “Love Activist” and “Soulful Life Educator” and my  source of this input, said that, “The underlying effect of competition; we envision ourselves as separate. We lose touch with our inter-connectedness, our wholeness, our oneness.” The opposite of competition is PAGTUTULUNGAN.

Theme 3 : Pagsusumikap (Hard Work)

Success is something that we all want to achieve in our lives. The type of success aspired to can vary greatly from person. Some people want nothing more than to be happily married, have a large family and bring up their children well.

Consider these: Hard work is the price for anything you are going to get. It builds self-discipline. It teaches you values. You make your own life with it. It gives your results. (Note to self: Expound. Give examples.)

Other people strive for academic success and becoming as highly educated as they can, while some people are much more career-focused, and even with this group, their main marker of success can be different things: the power they have, the money they earn or the good they do, a combination of things or something else entirely. Because every type of success is very different, every road to success is very different too, but everyone’s route has one thing in common which is a key to success: Hard Work or PAGSUSUMIKAP.

Sa pagwawakas, nais kong ibahagi ang isang bagay na batid na ninyo: ang PUP ay isa sa mga huling halimbawa ng pamantasan na lunduan ng malaya at progresibong kaisipan. Saksi dito ang makataong pagtingin nito sa kalinangan at edukasyon, magmula sa agham hanggang sining, na may iisang dakilang layon: ang ipunla at kalingain ang kabuuan ng pagkatao ng isang indibidwal. Instrumento rin ito para sa kaganapan ng layong edukasyon para sa mahihirap bilang karapatang pantao at kalayaang akademiko. Mga salalayan kung bakit nilayon ng mga tagapagtatag nito, kasama ang taong aking kinakatawan ngayon, na itayo ang pamantasang ito sa lalawigan ng Kanlurang Mindoro.

Maraming salamat po at sa ngalan ni Vice-Mayor Bong Marquez, pagbati ng makabuluhang ika-9 na anibersaryo sa Sintang Paaralan dito sa mahal nating Bayan ng Sablayan.

Mabuhay tayong lahat.

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(* Delivered October 9, 2019 at Siburan Hall, Municipal Building, Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro)

Photo: The Faculty of PUP Sablayan Branch; Taken by Prof. Reinne Alcaraz




Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Tale of Two Tamaraws



Trailblazer in Mindoro Rural Banking

Rural banking in the Philippines, just like the habitat of the endangered wild animals, is facing enormous challenges. The Tamaraw Rural Bank, Inc. (TRBI) and the very animal that they share the name are both struggling with time.

As the pioneering institution in rural banking in the whole island of Mindoro, it is a highly reputable bank supervised by the Central Bank of the Philippines. It has shown so much commitment towards improving the quality of life in its catchment areas practically in all municipalities of Occidental Mindoro. Adhered to their commitment of being “Your Trusted Partner in Progress”, as how its motto puts it, the TRBI exhausts all its resources to serve the banking needs of the province.

In retrospect, the rural bank is the precursor of the now-defunct Mina De Oro Rural Bank, Inc. which was established on October 25, 1956. After nine years, on March 15, 1965, it officially came into existence. Their principal office is in San Jose and now have a branch in Sablayan which arose to full operation in October of 2011. Its branch manager in Sablayan is Mr. Ronaldo V. Robles who had been in the branch for 8 years now. Aside from Robles, Choiline C. Advincula, teller/cashier; Jomar E. Vite, bookkeeper; Ronald T. Bugarin, loan clerk; and Calvin P. Viloza, security guard; are ready to serve you with a smile. 

Their vision is to be a leader in serving the farmers, fishers, and small entrepreneurs and businessmen and become a responsible rural banking institution using the highest standards in service delivery and be a staunch mission partner in the development of local economies. The Tamaraw Rural Bank, Inc. is a proud member of the Rural Bankers’ Association of the Philippines (RBAP).

Endangered Animal

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources or DENR designated the October of every year as “Special Month for the Conservation and Protection of the Tamaraw in Mindoro”. The “Tamaraw Month” is provided under Presidential Proclamation No. 273 of 2002. The biggest part of Mt. Iglit-Baco, home for Bubalus Mindorensis, is part of Sablayan. Tamaraw Rural Bank, Inc. periodically coordinates with the Protected Area and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB) of DENR about activities related to its commemoration and consequently on the latter’s participation in the upcoming headcount of the dwarf buffalo which was considered by many as one of the Philippines’ national treasure. Nine years ago, the Tamaraw was declared endangered by authorities and experts in wild animal conservation.

The Tamaraw, in reality, is not a subspecies of the carabao. They may have many identical physical attributes but the latter is a bit larger. The Tamaraw has a lot of hair and donning light markings on its face and has short, V-shaped horns. Mindoro’s unique animal is part and parcel and important feature of our delicate ecosystems. It is one of the most prominent biological heritages of our island.

The Tamaraw Rural Bank, Inc. as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) contributed to the conduct of the recent Tamaraw Count in the Mts. Iglit-Baco Natural Park (MIBNP) by way of providing uniforms to park rangers and volunteers and other necessities relevant to the activity. The count held last April 2019 in Occidental Mindoro has officially recorded a total of 480 participating individuals from 18 vantage points.  The Tamaraw Count was initiated in 2000 and is now an annual event that takes place in said area usually in April of every month. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), through its Tamaraw Conservation Program (TCP), takes the main cudgels in the annual count which aims to monitor the status and population of Tamaraws in their habitat. The bank supports all the activities in this year’s Month of the Tamaraw celebration.

For the whole month of October 2019, there will be motorcade, forum, symposium/ fora, day camp, Dalaw-Turo, quiz bee, fun run, and bio-camp anchored on this theme: “327 Tamaraw ng Mindoro: Sagisag ng Bawat Pilipino, Pangalagaan at Paramihin ito.”  The Tamaraw Rural Bank will support the Tamaraw Count come 2020 and surely in the years ahead. Last October 5, 2019, Tamaraw Rural Bank, Inc. joined and sponsored the Padyak-Tamaraw, a national Tamaraw Month bike fest for a cause. The bikers’ rendezvous happened at the Tamaraw Gene Pool Farm, Brgy. Manoot, Rizal.

The uniqueness of the Tamaraw must be carried in every endeavor, struggle, and inspiration of each Mindoreño. Be it in rural banking and in environmental conservation.

Banking and Ecological Protection

Under the leadership of its president and chairman, Mr. Emerito L. Ramos III, the Tamaraw Rural Bank, Inc. looks forward for getting more clients and in reacting and improving in many ways, as they strive to be responsible stewards of the environment. The rural bank acknowledge that they have a responsibility with their customers, employees, investors and the communities that they serve to better understand the impact of their operations on pro-environmental activities of their clients and help reduce the impact of environmental degradation through their future CSRs.

Mr. Ramos emphasized that it is their mission to, “take part in providing a bright and promising future of an improved economy and prosperous lives for Filipinos in the countryside.” Ramos is the current president of the Confederation of Southern Tagalog Rural Bankers.

Though a long shot aim, they are looking forward to venture on the juxtaposition of rural banking and ecological protection. For both the rural bank and the endangered animal, the Earth is what they all have in common.

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(Photo: Ronaldo V. Robles)


Tuesday, October 8, 2019

The Grand Master and His Foster Father



Wesley So made it to the semifinals of the World Fischer Random Chess Championship after defeating (6.5-1.5) Vladislav Fedoseev in the quarterfinals last October 6, 2019 to join Fabiano Caruana, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and world champion Magnus Carlsen in the Final Four. The Bacoor-born chess prodigy will meet them this October 26 in Norway.

The International Chess Federation (FIDE) runs the tournament. Fischer Random has different rules from the ordinary or classical chess we know. Just ask the experts to explain to you about it. Honestly, I can’t.

In an interview at Chess.Com by David Cox posted in April 10, 2019, Wesley So, the Philippine-born chess wonder and world’s top 10, recollects how he met former actress Lotis Key. So said, “I was staying with this Filipino guy during the tournament, and he put on a dinner party where I met Lotis and her family …. [T]hey gave me a place to stay, which was only supposed to be a short-term thing, six months to help me get my paperwork and everything sorted out. They’d always supported a lot of foster children through their local church. But then within 10 months of that Christmas, I was living with them full-time and they adopted me.” Lotis Key, erstwhile Dolphy’s leading lady, is married to Bambi Kabigting, a former basketeer who now lives in the US.

Wesley So’s surrogate father has ancestry in San Jose, Occidental Mindoro. He is a first cousin from maternal side of my high school batch mate Francisco “King” Banta, a resident of San Roque and a basketball referee in town. King, by the way is the youngest of Lt. Col. Jose Banta and Pilar Trinidad. Pilar had a sister named Estrella (or Esther) who later tied knots with Ramon Kabigting. Ramon and Esther are the parents of Renato nicknamed “Bambi,” now foster father of Wesley So. Bambi is the subject of my conversation with his cousin King through private messenger at Facebook the other night.

Renato “Bambi” Kabigting is a former college basketball star who played for the Ateneo Blue Eagles and Crispa Redmanizers and from there moving on to several professional basketball teams including San Miguel (1982), Alaska and Great Taste (1986). He had a short stint in the PBA though. In 2014, Lotis and Bambi took Wesley into their family.

Bambi is a grandson of one of San Jose’s early settlers Vicente Trinidad and his wife Isidra. His grandparents from the Trinidad side owned a refreshment parlor at the mill site of the Sugar Central in San Jose during World War-II. Throughout the Japanese occupation, Vicente became aide and kitchen staff of guerilla leader and local hero Capt. Lawrence Cooper.  One of Bambi’s aunts, Esperanza (or Panching), even served as medic attending the wounded Filipino guerillas and American soldiers during the Japanese occupation before the historic Mindoro Landing of the US and Allied Forces on December 15, 1944.

Bambi Kabigting’s mother, Estrella Trinidad (or Esther), is the first ever beauty titlist of Pandurucan, San Jose’s name of yore. The first beauty contest ever held in that town was in 1950 and Esther bagged the title. Esther became flight stewardess at Philippine Airlines (PAL) until his retirement in the 70s. Her marriage to Ramon Kabigting yields 7 children: 4 boys and 3 girls, namely, Ramon Vicente, Renato (Bambi), Roel, Ruby Anna (Avecilla), Roselle, Rhodora and Raul.

Esther as a teenager studied at the South Mindoro Academy (SMA), the precursor of now Divine Word College of San Jose (DWCSJ). Before her time at PAL, Esther taught at San Jose Pilot Elementary School, according to my buddy King Banta.

Kabigting was in the line-up of the triumphant Blue Eagles in 1975 when Ateneo bagged its 13th NCAA basketball crown. They repeated the feat in 1976. Five players on that team went on to play in the PBA: Steve Watson, Joy Carpio, Fritz Gaston, Padim Israel, and yes, Bambi Kabigting.

Grand Master and chess book writer Artur Yusupov of Russia thinks that Fischer Random is an alternative variant but it is hard to predict how it will develop then. Yusupov further stressed that, "Chess is very beautiful and difficult and will be played many years to come.”

Like family ties, chess and basketball dwell in the heart of the Filipinos to stay.  

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Photo from Wesley So’s Facebook page

References:



“Mindoro sa Panahon ng Digmaan”, Rodolfo M. Acebes; 2008; National Commission on Culture and Arts; pp. 235-236.



Sunday, September 8, 2019

Araw ni Maria Ngayon





“Papaano naging national holiday ang isang selebrasyon na para lamang sa mga Katoliko?,” tanong ito ni Archbishop Emeritus Fernando Capalla ayon sa isang panayam sa UCANews. Sinabi rin ng dating arsobispo ng Davao na sa ganitong mga pagtatakda, napupulitika ang isang panrelihiyong gawain. Nasaan dito ang sinasabi ng iba na may Separation of Church and the State? Pero “welcome and commendable” naman daw ang mga deklarasyon na ganito na nagtatalaga na gawing holiday ang ilang Marian celebration. Sa katotohanan, kahit sa ibang bansa gaya ng Mexico, Puerto Rico at iba pa ay may mga Marian national holiday observance din.

Simula ngayong araw ngayon ring taon, special working holiday na sa buong bansa ang kapanganakan ng Birheng Maria o ang Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin. Nilagdaan ng pangulo noong ika-8 ng Agosto, 2019 ang RA 11370 na nagtatakda ng nasabing pambansang selebrasyon.

Nag-ugat ito sa isang panukalang batas sa Mababang Kapulungan na akda ni First District of  Ilocos Norte Congressman Rodolfo Fariñas. Ito na ang ikalawang kautusan na gawing pista opisyal ang isang araw na pagpaparangal kay Maria. Una ay noong taong 2017, pinagtibay ang RA 10966 na si Fariñas rin ang awtor na nagtatakda na holiday din ang Disyembre 8, Pista ng Imaculada Concepcion. Samakatuwid, dalawang batas na ang nilalagdaan ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte para opisyal na kilalanin ng estado ang kabanalan ni Maria. Una ay ang Immaculate Conception at ito ngang Nativity of Mary.

Malakas ang debosyon ng mga Pinoy kay Maria at sa katotohanan, naniniwala kaming mga Katoliko na si Maria ay patronesa ng bansa. Ito rin ang paniniwala ni Congressman Fariñas na umano ay isang Marian devotee. Pero ang ironic dito, ang mambabatas na nagtulak ng dalawang batas na ito ay inakusahan na nambubugbog ng asawa. Bagamat hindi napatunayan sa hukuman, maraming mga personalities sa showbiz at political circles na wife batter nga daw ito. Malayong-malayo ito kay Jose na kabiyak ni Maria.

Si Congressman Fariñas ay kasal sa dating modelo at artistang si Maria (pansinin ito) Teresa Carlson ng Zambales at ina ng walo niyang mga anak. Nagpatiwakal si Carlson noong 2004. Ang kaso ng pagkamatay ni Carlson ay isa sa mga naging panulukang kaso o kadahilanan kung bakit naisa-batas ang RA 9262 or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Act. Itinanggi ni Fariñas na biktima ng domestic violence ang kanyang asawa. Itinaggi niya na ang kanyang pambubugbog ang dahilan ng suicide ng magandang dating komedyante sa pelikula.

Papaigting ang kagutumang dama ngayon ng mga magsasaka. Ito ay sanhi ng Rice Tariffication Law na nararanasan ngayo ng nasabing sektor. Kagutuman sa kanayunan na parang panlipunang bulkan na maaring sumabog anumang sandali simula ngayon. Isang socio-political situation na halos walang pinag-iba sa sitwasyon ng pamumuno ng mapaniil na si Herodes nang ang sanggol na si Maria ay ipaglihi at isilang.

Tiyak ko na mas magiging masaya si Maria kung sa kanyang kaarawan at nang siya ay ipaglihi ay kasabay na maaksyunan ng gobyerno ang krisis sa bigas kaysa sa itakda na national holiday ang araw na ito. Kapag ang pamahalaan ay nanindigan laban sa panghihimasok ng World Trade Organization (WTO) sa bansa at kung ititigil ang deregulasyon at pribatisasyon ng National Food Authority of NFA. Kasabay ng pagtutuon sa suportang serbisyo sa mga magsasaka tulad ng libreng irigasyon, binhi at ilan pang mga pangunahing pangangailangan sa pagtatanim. Kasama rin ang pagbili ng gobyerno sa inaning palay ng mga magsasaka sa tamang presyo nang sa gayo’y maiwasan ang pagsasamantala sa kanila ng malalaking rice traders na siyang kumokontrol at nagtatakda sa suplay at presyo ng bigas na pinapasan ng kapwa magsasaka at mamimili.

Ito ang isa sa mga katulad na sitwasyong sa kanyang paglaki ay kamumulatan ng bagong silang na si Maria. Ang sanggol na sa kanyang paglaki ay aawitin ang kanyang Magnificat sa ganitong mga salita, “Mapadadakila ninyo kahit ang pinakaaba, mahahango sa kahirapan kahit ang pinakadukha. Maihahanay ninyo sila sa mga maharlika, mabibigyan ng karangalan kahit na ang dustang-dusta.” Huwag na nating pansinin kung totoong ito nga ang araw ng pagsilang ni Maria. Alalahanin na lang natin na ang bawat pagsilang ng tao ay dapat nagpapabago sa mundo at sa lipunang kanyang ginagalawan. Ang bawat katungkulang ating tinatamasa ay dapat nagpapabago sa ga lumang kalakaran. Ito ang isasamo natin sa araw na ito sa banal na Ina ni Hesus. Ito ang mas makabuluhang sangkap ng ating pananalangin, pagsamba at pamamanata sa araw na ito.

Mas magandang pa-birthday ito sa kanya ng gobyerno sa papalapit nating pagsalubong sa ika-500 anibersaryo ng pagdatal ng Kristiyanismo sa bansa sa taong 2021 na sakop pa rin ng termino ng kasalukuyang pangulo, kahit sabi niya hindi dapat itong ipagdiwang.

Ave Maria!

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