NCIP Issued Titles Questioned

Government officials, private citizens and a congressional inquiry are now focused at questionable NCIP issued land titles as different issues are arising between claimants and current owners. 

Questions are arising especially to land titles issued to claimants of Casa Vallejo and the construction site of government broadcast station in Wright Park. 

The heirs (represented by Richard Acop), who trace their roots to Cosen Piraso known as Kapitan Piraso, earlier secured two Certificates of Ancestral Land Title (CALT) which cover the property. Last year, the NCIP issued a writ of possession to the heirs to take over the property. 

Natural Resources Development Corporation (NRDC), the corporate arm of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), earlier protested the writ issued by the NCIP's regional hearing office, saying it was done in an “irregular and unlawful manner.” 

On January 2, present tenants of Casa Vallejo, which now houses a hotel, a bookshop, a cinematheque, a restaurant, and a spa, received a notice to vacate the property. This was supposed to be implemented on January 10, but the city sheriff postponed it to Tuesday, January 14. 

The property in question was part of the government center under proclamation 63 signed on August 1925 by then Governor-General Leonard Wood. This government property was passed on to different government agencies over the years. Since 2007, it was under the care of the NRDC. 

The Casa Vallejo was erected in 1909 within the said Government center and was then called “Dormitory 4,” where civil government employees stayed during the summer when Americans started developing Baguio. 

Salvador Vallejo, a Spanish businessman who hailed from Malaga province, secured a lease to operate the dormitory into a hotel in the 1920s and 1930s, thus earning the name Casa Vallejo 

Councilor Betty Lourdes Tabanda filed a resolution on Monday, January 13 urging President Benigno Aquino III to declare the 105-year-old hotel as "a heritage site”. 

The take over "as an ancestral claim and its sale to a corporation" of the disputed lot "may cause physical and cultural destruction of a site considered as a century old historical landmark," Councilor Tabanda said in her resolution. 

Last January 14, the NCIP head office issued an order to refrain from implementation of the writ of possession issued by the same office to the Cosen Piraso heirs not to complicate the ongoing congressional inquiry and being a subject matter for another case now pending before the supreme court. 

Baguio's oldest hotel is maybe saved by the status quo order issued by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) on Tuesday, January 14 to heirs of Cosen Piraso but “it did not dictate the writ of possession issued by the same office nullified”, said a concerned citizen. 

The local government and concerned residents in Baguio fear once this property is won by the claimants, it may result in the demolition of the historic hotel to pave the way for further development. Other citizens who acquired their residential lots legally are also concerned that if titles issued by NCIP to take over government properties are granted, how much more for private properties. Some of these citizens had been living in Baguio since the 1950s and 60s and fear that they will also be evicted because of titles issued by NCIP. 

On October last year, Baguio Congressman Nicasio Aliping, Jr. issued house resolution 419 “directing the house of representatives committee on Indigenous Peoples to conduct an inquiry and/or investigation, in aid of legislation, on the blatant deviation from the Indigenous concept of the ownership of ancestral lands / domains over which certificates of ancestral land titles/ancestral domain titles (CALT/CADT) were issued by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP)”. 

This Congressional inquiry was timely to stop the writ of possession; "the first issued to all NCIP issued titles" according to NRDC president Felix Marinias. It is also timely as several issues regarding NCIP issued titles are coming out including a claim on a construction site for a government broadcast station at Wright Park where the injunction to stop the construction by the heirs of Quintino and Josephine Abanag represented by Marion Pool and Isaias Abanag was junked by NCIP itself. 

Some residents including an officer of DENR was hoping this inquiry will solve the issues involving the NCIP issued land titles. “Maybe they should re-examine the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA)”, said the DENR Official. 

The Last Tree

"Do we have to wait for the last pine tree before we even think of preserving it? Do we have to wait for a disaster to happen before we come to our senses. We are the most intelligent of all species, why do we have to be the most destructive? Do we really have to destroy in order to to survive. Can't we instead save what we have left while we can? They say it is for our children, I believe it is our debt to pay for taking so much and we will not want our children paying for the consequences of what we owe." Baguio Smile

Just thinking out loud after reading that Japan is spending 150 million yen (£1.2 million) to preserve the last tree that survived the Tsunami last year in a thick shoreline forest. Story here.

Muslim Power

An army of Muslim women are the main attraction of the long civic parade of the City's female forces in celebration of the women's month last Friday, March 8, 2013. (Sunstar Baguio)

The Fourth Ensalidummaay Convention

In preparation of the Ensalidummaay Grand Convention or grand canao this summer, the fourth Ensalidummay assembly was held at the Anthurium Hall in Benguet State University last January 19, 2013.

The gathering is a quarterly solidarity assembly by different groups online and offline where members of different groups present projects that other groups can help out.

Partly sponsored by the Aliping family, Rob Ocampo and other members who brought in foods and drinks, the event is once again attended by leaders numbering to almost a hundred from about 10 groups. It was hosted by Interactive Cordillera, an online group that was started before the advent of facebook. The Samahang Ilocano (SI) is the newest group to join the event. The group attended to present their new identity which was always perceived as a fraternity now reorganized as a philanthropic non government organization.

The event was a mixture of presentation and workshop where members learn the steps of Cordilleran Dances. Parlor games are the fun part of the event. Special guest Glen Gaerlan performed two great song pieces.

Part of the event was a planning discussion for the up-coming anniversary of the event which will be held at the Pine Trees of the World Park this coming April 20 in the tradition of the grand canao. A dancing competition of the authentic Cordilleran dances will be the highlight of the event with members of the different groups to present in their own local costumes. There will be a singing competition in the evening in front of a bonfire where members will sing a cordilleran song.

The Ensalidummaay Grand Convention is expected to attract several hundreds of participants.

Panagbenga 2013 Schedule of activities

Kariton

A front page photo on the November 14, 2012 issue of Sunstar Baguio. It was actually taken at the La Trinidad trading post.

Libro Mo, Inspirasyon Ko Part 1

A Multi-organization Book drive benefiting the new Natubleng, Buguias Highschool and Camilo Lucaben Elementary School in Kibungan, Benguet.

Forgotten

October 9, 2012 Sunstar issue.

Panagbenga Festival, the Complexities

The 17th Panagbenga probably has presented one of the unique innovations done with its street dancing parade shifting from the original flower filled dances backed with pop music into cultural presentations. This and many other events earned lots of positive and negative reactions from the audience. I believe all festivals have complexities.

With the final showdown at the Athletic Bowl, Cordillerans seem to have improved in showcasing their ethnic customs. However, the supposed street dancing parade was past paced along the stretch of Session and Harrison roads that the audience there complained for the lack of entertainment.

As my friend Fiscal Elmer Sagsago said of his visitors who came all the way from Bicol, “They came expecting a lot of dancing during the street dancing competition but were very disappointed. If you invite guests to your City to be entertained, make sure that they will be entertained,” said Sagsago. Many other guests share the same sentiment and they did not care to follow them to the athletic bowl because they didn’t expect a grander show.


The problem the organizers had been trying to solve was the pacing of the parade. As the BFFFI Chairman explained, “if we solve the pacing, we lose the entertainment value. But if we focus on the entertainment value, it will affect the pacing.” It probably is one of the most common problems of festivals.

During the early years of the Panagbenga festival, 2 minutes were allotted for each participant to perform in designated areas on the streets. This causes big gaps in between participants. But are the big gaps a big problem among the audience? As one of the execrators commented, “I believe the gap is the least of their worries and they’d rather enjoy watching the performances which is the reason why they came.”

Another issue among the observers is the extended 2-day parade. It was stretched so that the two parades could be finished earlier in the day. It has also more income potential for businesses with more days for tourists to stay in the City.

A veteran journalist who had been covering many festivals told me that long parades are not problems in other parts of the country, the longer the parades, the better. The festivals like the Sinulog starts at 8 in the morning and ends at 12 midnight and people enjoy them and they don’t complain.

They have concentrated their effort for that one day grand show and they have successfully generated longing for the audience that sponsors are willing to bestow their support giving away more than enough budget to make a spectacular festival.

As my journalist friend said, our festival in Baguio seems to be concentrated on the income the city can generate than to the quality that it was stretched thin throughout the month of February in five weeks of scattered activities.
Yet sponsors seem to be backing away to give their full support for the festival with less and less funds to spend for a grander showcase.

Another friend who has observed the growth of the festival through the years compared it to a cup of peanut that if placed on a large plate, the peanut would look very little for not filling the whole space. But if the same amount of peanut is placed on a small saucer, it would look plenty.

Less is more would be the statement. Putting all the Panagbenga events in 1 week instead of 1 month would perhaps become a dream vacation for many tourists, but of course, less income to the businesses sector. How can we satisfy the audience at the same time maximize the potential to the business sector? It is now a question how to balance quality and quantity.

One suggestion I received from another friend is there should be more promotions. People from other places only think of the main parade when they hear Panagbenga.


Every activity should have its own advertising budget, not a collective promotion for the whole event. Although the fluvial parade was a disappointment this year, this was one of the unique events that this friend of mine wanted to see because of the photos he saw in a magazine published last year, Yet it completely skipped his mind because he did not see any separate advertisement promoting it. There may have been ads but not enough that not many people noticed.

He said all of the activities during the Panagbenga have potentials to be Grand National events. The “Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom” could attract national or even international artists who are willing to come and create a painting that they can give away to Panagbenga and the foundation can earn by auctioning them.

With only one famous artist we can invite to come, many others will follow. And many of the best artists who can draw crowds live right in the neighborhood.

The Pony Boys day too can attract more participants it its games if properly advertised.

I do agree that if we can’t compress all the events together, separate promotions should be given more attention. I promoted the “Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom” event to online facebook groups, many came and have created beautiful designs that were chosen to be included in the parades. And that was just me. How much more when there are people dedicated to do that kind of promotions to all groups in the country? Perhaps even this event can create big income potential when it’s hyped in all advertising media.

Like what my friend said, there’s a possible way to address the quality and not loss in quantity for this festival. We may not need to hire more people to do it, just use proper mechanisms.

"Fun in the Philippines" Blunder

A photo of Thailand used in The Straits Times baring the new DOT campaign "It's more fun in the Philippines" is now one of the rising issues online.

The photo below was credited to the Department of Tourism in the online version of the News paper.


Here's the print version of the paper published on January 12, 2012.

The photo was formerly published online showing the Shongkaran Festival of Thailand.


Irresponsible reportage?
Department of Tourism Blunder?
An individual's deception?

I for one will not blame the reporter if that photo has indeed come from the Department of Tourism. If for some reason, an individual just want to make fun of the logo and the DOT readily accepted it, then perhaps that department should be the one to be educated first about our tourism for they don't know what are ours and what are not.

But if the photo was not from DOT but only attributed to them like they claimed, then the responsibility is to the journalist especially if the photo was only downloaded online.

I don't like the new slogan but I don't want to reject it. Compared to the "Pilipinas kay Ganda", there are many ways to make it work. We can promote the Philippines as a place of Fiestas, Adventures, Foods, Beaches, etc.

Yet, if our Department Heads don't have enough knowledge and don't explore for new ideas to promote tourism, our new campaign will not go far and we'll just have another useless battle cry striving after the wind. I do believe there are many talented individuals who can make this campaign escalate.

Yes, it's fun in the Philippines as what our colleagues working abroad would say, "there's no place like home" because there are many things that we can proudly say, "only in the Philippines."

War Dance

What I am going to talk about here is not the war dance of our Igorot tribes but a documentary film I recently watched, a movie about the Acholi tribes of Northern Uganda. It’s about the lives of the people in a war zone torn by unending wars between the rebels and the Government. I wanted to watch the film to learn better documentation coz it has won several awards and was even nominated for Oscar. I learned more than just documentation here.

I was supposed to title this entry “The God Forsaken Land” but I don’t believe God would abandon those people even though that’s what some people think of them. Listening to the children’s stories would make your tears fall. In this place, common people are killed by rebels for no reason at all. They would hack them mercilessly and force their families to bury them. In some cases, body parts were just scattered and families have to locate the corpses’ heads to identify their kin. Raping of women are common stories. Old enough boys are forced to join the army of rebels. For the rebels, the more children they abduct for their army, the higher their ranks will be. These children are ordered to kill or be killed. There are about 200,000 children orphaned by the war.

But despite of this cruelty the Acholi people have kept their love for music. Playing their songs and dances can make them forget even just for a while the cruelty and make them feel as if everything is just how it used to be. In 2005, in the farthest and most vulnerable government protected school in a camp in Patongo emerged a group of Acholi orphans who aspire to present their musical talents in a National Musical and Choral competition. First time to attend such a big competition, the group traveled for two days on rugged terrains under armed escorts to the capital City of Kampala. To many of them, just going to Kampala is a big enough dream. Coming from the north, they were insulted by other competitors as people from the bush, rebels and murderers. Most of the other competitors believed the first time contestants will finish last. The inferiority feelings made it hard for them to compete.

Yet where most of the news are killings and fighting, the whole City is excited to watch what these people from the north are to present. People are keen to observe every time they’re onstage. In the end, they have exceeded everyone’s and perhaps even their own expectations. They have proven that they’re more than just children of war. They are musicians. Although they don’t have the freedom and resources like everyone else, they brought home the trophy for their country’s traditional dance called Bwola. The very first time the Acholi tribe brought home such a trophy in a National competition.

This event inspired many of them that despite of growing in a cruel environment, they can still do great things. This group did not just win for Patongo, they won for the entire Acholi tribe and the people who live like they do. Like what one of the teachers in the documentary said, the war has taken their parents, brothers, sisters and relatives and left them a lot of scars. But that’s not where their story ends; they still have the chance to become the best.

This story has also won my heart. It’s more than just an excellent documentary where I learned a lot. It’s an inspiration.

If you want to help the people of Patongo or other people like them, visit http://shineglobal.org/