Wednesday, February 27, 2008 Don't be blinded by flowerfest spectacle: group By Rimaliza Opiña
THE public must not be blinded by the spectacle of the Flower Festival celebration.
In spite of the fact that the 13-year-old affair is now handled by a private group, the Tongtongan ti Umili said issues of alleged corruption in the past staging of the Panagbenga and cultural misrepresentation should never be set aside.
Recalling the audit observation memorandum (AOM) of the Commission on Audit (COA), which said among other things public funds donated to the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation Inc (BFFFI) has not been liquidated, the Tongtongan said it should be the task of the present administration to sanction those who should be held accountable.
"People have the right to know where their money was spent and how their elected officials spent it," the group stressed in a statement, referring to monies donated by the John Hay Management Corporation and financial assistance of the City Council and Baguio Representative Mauricio Domogan.
The past and present organizers of the Panagbenga, meanwhile, were not spared from criticism over misrepresentations of Cordillera's culture.
The Tongtongan said culture has been commercialized and sacrificed at the expense of entertainment.
"Clearly, this is at the expense of exploiting Cordillera indigenous culture so rooted in our indigenous peoples' history of cultural heritage. Commercializing causes its own slow death -- and this death is tantamount to that of indigenous peoples when we lose our identity due to national oppression," the group said.
They added that customizing native costumes to fit the latest trend in clothing and performance of native dances to the tune of the latest songs is tasteless.
The Tongtongan stressed that this is disregarding native attire of Cordillerans. "To replicate this for public consumption and consumer satisfaction robs the people of their own cultural symbols and practices. Misrepresentation gives the broader public wrong impressions of the Cordilleran culture. In fact, we may be introducing the wrong culture to our children," it said.
With these issues, the group called on the City Council to push for a thorough investigation of the donations given to the BFFFI during its past staging.
Recently, the City Council approved the resolution authored by Councilor Fred Bagbagen asking the Commission on Audit (COA) to furnish City Hall offices their AOM.
Likewise, the Tongtongan asked future organizers of the Panagbenga to study the guidelines of the affair and ensure that in forthcoming activities, culture is respected and preserved.
