Monday, April 21, 2008 Dacawi: From festival to mourning By Ramon Dacawi Benchwarmer
HUNGDUAN, Ifugao -- The national flag flew at half-mast last Wednesday at the leveled hilltop where this town's hall stands.
Unlike in past years, the gong beats and dances were subdued and abbreviated. The village folk had cramped into a day their annual, weeklong "tungoh", a cultural festival that was supposed to be in anticipation of a bountiful rice harvest.
The celebration -- a period of rest in the traditional agricultural cycle -- had turned into a period of mourning.
The nine barangays were counting and burying their dead, praying for the survival of those still fighting for life in hospitals.
Early afternoon five days before, the victims were on their way home for the "tungoh" when the bus they were on plunged into a deep ravine in Diadi, Nueva Vizcaya.
Town officials canceled most of the festivities, including the "hogop dib ba-le" a blessing ritual of the 10th native hut added to the nine representing the nine barangays of this remote, historic town of ancient and extensive rice terraces carved out of mountainsides.
The ritual would require stomping of feet, which is uncalled for in the wake of the tragedy.
Still, at the festival's opening program, the crowd couldn't help but break into loud applause when the soft-spoken town mayor, Pablo Cuyahon, announced a collective decision with the Municipal Council: All the cash prizes intended for the contests -- native dance, gong-beating, song, ethnic ensemble and ethnic games, including the "hudhud" chanting -- would go to the burial and medical expenses.
In the afternoon, the womenfolk tried to chant the "hudhud", the romantic tales celebrating wealth, nobility, and kinship traditionally sang to break the monotony during harvest and funeral wakes. As evening fell, they dispersed for home, some going straight to the wakes.
Mayor Cuyahon and the Town Council initially thought of canceling all the activities but decided on a shortened version.
It would help the townsfolk cope. That's why the Philippine Sports Commission still ran the Banaue-Hungduan 21-kilometer (km) marathon and the traditional "climathon" to Mt. Napulawan, the province's highest peak. It helped the runners cope.
As of Friday noon, the town had lost and buried 12, including town councilor Peter Pocopio. He was driving the ill-fated bus carrying 35 passengers that had started out from Maddela, Quirino, where many Hungduan natives had resettled. Others were returned and buried in Maddela.
Ifugao Governor Teddy Baguilat came to pay tribute. So did Mayors Lino Madchiw of neighboring Banaue and Jonathan Cuyahon of Kiangan, the old capital town.
The governor cited the fortitude of a villager who lost two relatives in the accident, Mariano Mondiguing of Barangay Abatan. He donned his full regalia and left for Banaue, to be with his troupe scheduled to perform before delegates to the seventh Igorot International Consultation (IIC).
Mondiguing's daughter, Joyce Dao-ay, and Shan-Shan, her five-year old son, were the last to the buried last Friday.
Between their discussions on issues affecting the homeland, IIC delegates, mostly Cordillera expatriates, passed the hat and had Rey Baguilat, president of the Igorot Global Organization (IGO), deliver the collection to Mayor Cuyahon.
Expatriate Jenelyn Paclayan-Balanza, a nurse based in Michigan, skipped the consultation and rushed to Hungduan with two boxes of medicine. She and her niece, Twinkle Labutan, who also finished nursing, helped out in a medical mission organized by Municipal Health officer Butch Bigornia.
"This mission can't wait and I can later open the IGO website for the results of the conference," Balanza said.
Governor Baguilat and Mayor Cuyahon themselves found solace the moment they reached Diadi to bring the bodies home. Aside from rescuing the injured and retrieving bodies, residents of Barangay Nagsabaran had also retrieved the victims' belongings. Diadi Mayor Marvic Padilla made sure the valuables were secured at the town hall.
"It's real comfort to know what Mayor Padilla and his constituents did for the victims and to ease our town's suffering," Cuyahon said.
As the townsfolk brace for the long haul of picking up the pieces of shattered lives, Mayor Cuyahon has appealed for support to help the survivors foot their medical bills.
Samaritans may reach out to Hungduan by dialing the mayor's mobile phone number at 09057228039. (e-mail:rdacawi@yahoo.com for comments)
