Monday, January 21, 2008 Mongaya: Sinulog on television By Anol Mongaya Panahom
JOSTLING through the mass of humanity from the old Mongaya residence beside Chong Hua Hospital through Fuente Osmeña and Osmeña blvd. on my way to the Sun.Star office in P. del Rosario gave me a sense of mass experience outside the Cebu City Sports Complex.
Aside from the Sinulog beat and the dancing off and on the streets, one can see the throngs from all walks of life watching and shoving, the myriad of commercial activities, and the traffic.
Those who covered the Sinulog on board choppers could see the thick mass.
By the way, though I know the pilot was safely a distance away, I texted Councilor Jack Jakosalem of the concerns of some who saw the Sikorsky flying by the tall Club Ultima building. He immediately texted back saying they won’t do it again. Thanks sir.
I can’t help starting off with this after overhearing the lady television host blabbering about nothing much happening outside the sports complex.
I have been observing the annual Sinulog since the days when my late father brought me along when, as Ministry of Sports and Youth Development (MYSD) provincial coordinator of then regional director Boy Odilao, he helped stage the first Sinulog festivities around the Basilica.
Through the years when the festival grew and developed, the dancing contingents around the streets and at the sports complex have become the main attraction. But the people inside the complex are but a small fraction of the humanity who go out and celebrate the festival in the streets.
In fairness to colleagues in television outfits covering the Sinulog, people I know who stayed at home to enjoy the show minus the crowds told me the coverage has generally improved.
An unsolicited advice from Nonoy Mongaya of Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) for the organizers: there is also the need to plan out the flow of pedestrian traffic during the Sinulog.
This way, we will know where we can cross the parade route orderly without being asked for identification cards. He cited one doctor responding to an emergency call that a policeman barred from crossing the parade route.
I also had this problem of where to cross the parade on my way to the Sun.Star office. Before, I always flashed the media pass issued by Sinulog organizers. I don’t know why they now issue inadequate number of passes to each media outlets.
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Congratulations to Hazel Binggaan who was crowned Miss Superbalita 2008 Saturday night at the Slabadu Café and Bistro.
