DON SALVADOR BENEDICTO -- Two feet high and 23-year-old Bonbon of this town who failed in fulfilling his dream of becoming an engineer, this time wants to become like the Philippines showbiz heartthrob and actor-singer Piolo Pascual.

Town mayor Marxlen De La Cruz who is sending Bonbon with Joseph Gregorio as his real name, to Cebu for the “You’ve Got the Talent” audition of ABS-CBN television network’s talent search, said he received a call asking him about Bonbon’s uniqueness and talent.

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“Bonbon is popular in my community and that he being my constituent deserves support. He is our pride” De La Cruz said.

Teresita Gregorio, 47, the four feet tall mother of Bonbon, said that of her three children, Bonbon being the youngest and only son, also has a sister named Eva, who’s only two feet, now 33 years old, and still single.

Bonbon who’d spent his engineering years at the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos only for one year, in 2005, quit school due to poverty. He used to receive support from former Bacolod City Councilor Elmer Sy and former mayor now vice mayor Cynthia De La Cruz of Don Salvador Benedicto at P2,000 monthly allowance.

Like any other normal men of his age, Bonbon wants to marry “when time comes.” But said however, he still would want to help his poor family whose source of living is farming.

“As a mother, despite of his physical difficulty, I am still proud of my son and his sister Eva because they’ve been very good children,” mother Teresita said.

Teresita said she could not remember anything bad happened when she got pregnant of Eva and Joseph. “I delivered them both normal. When the doctor said that their brains are normal, I sent them to school then. But because we lack financial source, we opted them to stop schooling,” Teresita said.

Teresita said she doesn’t know if her children’s being small is an inheritance because all of her and his husband’s elder families died already.

Like other Filipinos who love singing, Bonbon said he hopes to make it in the audition ultimately to help his poor parents.

Meanwhile, 18 Koreans came to the unveiling of the Statue of Lion Saturday led by Ja Jae Won, president of Ichon Lions Club of South Korea and Mayor De La Cruz, together with the officers and members of the Bacolod City Host Lions Club with its president Dr. Nilo Del Carmen.

Erected at Barangay Igmayaan, the club’s adopted barangay, the statue is part of the club’s proposed P1.3 million “tourism” park which De La Cruz, also a member, said will boost the tourism potential of his town.

“It will become a landmark as another tourist attraction especially for the Negrenses,” he said.

Del Carmen, on the other hand said, the second phase of the project which include coy pond, wishing, well, garden, viewing deck, and three flag poles representing the Philippines, Taiwan and Korea as twin clubs will be finished first quarter next year.

The lot is donated by the DSB municipal government through a memorandum of understanding. (George M. De La Cruz)