Skip to main content

Palengkera: Notes on the kapihan


The glaring absence of city government representatives in the kapihan sa palengke is indicative of their reluctance to be transparent and to practice true democracy.

It's true that our city officials have many priorities that they must attend to and we must respect that, but for the record, the following were invited: Mayor Peter Rey Bautista, who said he would be there at 11 a.m., but failed to appear because he was distributing gifts at a charity event organized by the Baguio Cantonese Association in SM. City Administrator Atty. Fianza who declined due to a prior engagement. City Engineer Bañes and Architect Degay who first said they were deciding which one of them would attend and then who, on the day before the kapihan, said they had a trip to Ilocos Sur -- a CBAO activity and they had to be there. We respect the choices they made but cannot help but feel that it was a wasted opportunity for dialogue.

The questions people wanted to ask them were simple: When will the restoration of the burned areas begin? How quickly can the restoration be completed? What does the plan look like? Can the public, or representatives of the market vendors and other stakeholders, observe the bidding process in the name of participation and transparency? What else can be done to further improve the market place, once the restoration is completed?



An officer of the CBAO had this to say when we followed up on their participation in the kapihan: Naiforward na sa Bids and Awards ang plano so wala na kayong pwedeng itanong sa amin. Hindi na kayo magkuquestion dito. Kung may iku-question pa kayo, dun na kayo magtanong sa Bids and Awards.

Bids have already been submitted for the restoration of the burned areas.

The vendors need the restoration to begin as soon as possible, and to be completed in the shortest time possible.

The market, and the rest of Baguio, needs the citizenry to stand up for transparency and good governance.

Two dear manongs of mine approached me on the fringes of the kapihan sa palengke yesterday and said two things that gave me much to think about.

One said that "Baguio is hopeless. Look at Burnham, have you seen the news? It's hopeless. We have reached the tipping point and there's no indication of things getting better anytime soon. It's depressing."

Another one said, jokingly: "You are the unqualified doing the unnecessary for the unconcerned."

But is Baguio really a hopeless case? And are people really so unconcerned as to just let things slide again and again and again?
Labels:

Comments

Anonymous said…
Haay salamat sa internet. Meron update agad si Padma re market dialogue. For sure I'll still be reading about it next Sunday in BMC. Thanks.
10 June 2009 at 15:59
Babeth Lolarga said…
Lemme just get some pressing deadlines and appointments out of the way. When I return to Baguio, I'll resume my ranting & raving against those indifferent SOBs in City Hall. But as a dear friend said of Peter Rey Bautista--his main concern is to get his ass in Congress in the next election. The f__k he cares about our city!
11 June 2009 at 07:24
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cordillera Folktales and Story-telling

It was cold and wet outside on the day of the launching of The Golden Arrow of Mt. Makilkilang and other Cordillera Folktales . But inside Mt. Cloud Bookshop we were warmed by stories read and performed by the Aanak di Kabiligan community theater group. Storytelling on a stormy afternoon. Paco Paco. A Benguet story from the book, published by the Cordillera Green Network. Aanak di Kabiligan means children of the mountains. The theater group was born out of the Cordillera Green Network's eleven years of conducting workshops in which children transform their grandparents' stories into theater productions. Here they perform the title story of the Golden Arrow of Mt. Makilkilang and Other Cordillera Folktales.
Post a Comment
Read more

Lola of Maipon

It's all too easy to fall asleep under the blanket of everyday life and to smother dreams with the mundane things I surround myself with. But once in a while, along comes a sparkling vision that jolts me out of my daily sleep and reminds me of the existence of convictions and worlds so different from my own. "Our beloved LOLA of Guinubatan, Maipon, Albay is the last true messenger of God. So, let us follow her holy teachings so that we will gain TRUE SALVATION without sufferings and without death." In another story I, the intrepid heroine, the adventurer seduced by mysteries, the pilgrim in search of truth, would follow them back to Guinubatan from Session Road, thirsting to see and hear their Lola for myself. However, it's all too easy -- much safer! -- to fall back asleep under the blanket of everyday life, and to smother dreams with the mundane things I surround myself with. Then along comes 9 a.m., and really, it's time to down the dregs of coffee at the bott
4 comments
Read more

Ritual for all Occasions

Attended a talk delivered by Dr. Albert Bacdayan, UP Baguio. Feb. 20, 2013. "Ritual for All Occasions: The significance and persistence of the 'Senga' in Northern Sagada." The senga is a ritual in which at least one chicken and one pig -- sometimes more -- are sacrificed. The senga is usually performed for milestones such as the completion of a house, the opening of a new business, a wedding, a funeral, when someone is ill, when someone is leaving on a journey. He spoke of how Cordillerans have a ritual for almost every occasion or ailment. Indeed, the word he used was not ritual but "remedy."Dr. Bacdayan described this as a "healthy agnosticism."He mused that the abundance or such remedies and rituals is the reason there are rarely feelings of helplessness among Cordillerans. He described ritual as a bundle of activities that assures people and anchors identity. When one calls the old men and is the principal of a senga, you are perceived t
Post a Comment
Read more