Chinese dragon spits fire / SM owns us
>> Tuesday, January 17, 2012
LETTERS FROM THE AGNO
March L. Fianza
BAGUIO CITY -- Chinese friends based in Baguio and Benguet who have been organizing the Spring Festival celebration said that it has been drawing a good crowd for the past 10 years. This lunar year is a “Water Dragon” year.
Jokingly, it is a year for all kinds of dragons – small, big, slippery, and whether they live in the streets or in Congress.
Although the number of visitors who come up to witness the Chinese grand parade is not comparable to the crowds pulled in by the annual Baguio Flower Festival or Panagbenga because the former has a measly P500,000 funding, while the latter festivities boasts of millions of pesos for its celebrations.
Newsmen in a dinner with leaders of the Baguio-Benguet Chinese community last week learned that of the half-million Chinese Spring Festival, half of it was contributed by the city.
This prompted a few newsmen to ask why. Kathleen Okubo of another print publication hit the nail right on the head when she said, the Chinese festival has been an existing celebration of a tradition and a tourism event that needed more support than the Panagbenga that was an invention.
True indeed. But in most cases, ideas especially those tied with “money” are the ones supported by government. Our officials would always be short-minded and would say, “oh never mind the Chinese, they can survive.”
Believe me, government only remembers the Chinese when it needs something, but will never sincerely think of giving its support if it is not solicited.
Government officials would rather choose to support trade fairs, carnivals with bingo socials that shift to “salisi” and drop-ball gambling when the police pretend to be blind.
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For this year’s Spring Festival Celebration, Dr. Charles Cheng and the event’s Executive Chairman Peter Ng of Supreme Hotel said the Grand Colorful Parade from Session Road through the city’s main thoroughfares to the Melvin Jones Grandstand will be on Jan. 21 (Saturday) at 3 p.m.
Before that on January 18, Wednesday at 2:00PM, the barangay gift–giving activity which has become an annual event will be at Kms. 04, 05 and 06 along Asin Road, the community that was hit by the Irisan trash avalanche.
But I find January 19 (Thursday) more interesting as this will be the day when Dr. Cheng and his partners will speak on Chinese medicines, acupuncture and the importance of FengShui to a man’s existence at the Baguio City Hall multi-purpose hall at 1:00PM.
FengShui, according to the dictionary is literally translated in English as “wind-water.” It was widely used to orient buildings, spiritual structures such as tombs and people’s residential houses.
Depending on the particular style of FengShui being used, a lucky site can be determined by looking for natural features such as bodies of water, stars, a hill or a mountain or a compass.
During the Cultural Revolution in China in the 1960s, FengShui was suppressed, but continued to gain popularity since then.
Whatever, I understand FengShui to be the good balance and pleasant living that is needed in anyone’s existence.
For example, I was told the good FengShui of the interior of a house may not be characterized by the presence of complete sets of appliances but by the way its occupants relate with each other.
Harmonious spiritual relationships, love and affection, no quarrels among the occupants, as well as seeing to it that people do not bump into each other along the corridors and passageways in the house is good FengShui which brings pleasant and stress-free living.
Unfinished chores have to be done, pointed fixtures and broken things should be removed and anything that disturbs the psyche of people in a house should be fixed.
In fact, psychiatrists and related professions found some principles of Feng Shui quite rational and have noted the same to be nearly parallel to folk remedies, or the tribal priests’ counsel and warnings – themambunong’s words included.
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Through this column, may I invite our readers to a street protest and rally on January 20, Friday at 2:00PM to fight against the cutting of trees at the SM area. Assembly will be at Governor Pack Road. Please inform your friends. Thank you.
In a petition against the planned tree-cutting activity, SMDC is set to kill 182 trees consisting of 43 fully grown Alnus trees and uproot 97 growing Pine trees and 42 saplings inside the Luneta Hill area to pave way for a parking lot.
It was learned that on Oct. 27, 2011, the DENR granted a cutting, balling and pruning permit to SMDC upon the instructions of a clearance signed by DENR Sec. Ramon Paje on Oct. 2011.
And quicker than lightning, the city architect also has already issued a building permit for SMDC to start building the parking lot.
The petition also said: “By issuing a tree cutting permit, DENR allows itself to be questioned publicly of its worthiness as well as its role as defender of the environment and natural resources. By ruling in favor of tree cutting by a business entity, it is fast losing public support to an already tarnished image.”
“DENR also shows preferential treatment for business establishments against original inhabitants, locals and residents who have long cared for the environment. Economy at the expense of the environment is greed.”
Of course, every true-blue Baguio boy like me is against the reprehensible act of cutting trees by those who were tasked to protect the environment, but this does not follow to mean that we are against the persons or against SM.
In fact we are friends. What we are up against are their plans which we think are wrong. So if we are friends, I should be able to tell them: “pards, madi dyta plano yu. Apay manu aya inted da?”
By the way, many have already noticed that traffic authorities have allotted the road from the DILG crossing at Upper Session Road down to the Session Road circle for the exclusive use of SM clients, including me. By installing the signboard “to SM only,” the authorities have practically given away the road as the “private driveway” of SM.
Not only that – the authorities have also given away the Luneta Hill road. It is a public road and nobody can buy or sell a public road unless you are God. Now, that makes me think - is Mr. Who a god?
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