‘Mismanagement’ -Public clamor for audit of Panagbenga funds pushed

By Julie G. Fianza

BAGUIO CITY – Private sectors and city officials here are now pressing an audit of funds generated from proceeds of the recent Pangbenga Festival here following complaints of mismanagement of the money.

Councilor Leandro Yangot, Jr., last week endorsed to the Sangguniang Panlungsod resolutions on the matter and transfer of management and operation of the Baguio Flower Festival (BFF) to the city government.

In his first resolution, Yangot, Jr., requested an “appropriate accounting and audit of all funds used in the preparation and staging of the 2014 celebration of Panagbenga as well as those in past years be published and posted for the information of the public.”

 A post-evaluation should also be done of the recent and past flower festival celebrations, to “further improve” the staging of the city’s premier festival, Yangot, Jr. added.

In his latter proposed resolutions, the councilor asked that the management and operation of BFF be under the city government of Baguio.

He stated that an editorial from a local weekly newspaper “emphasized the apparent transformation of the Panagbenga from a cultural and floral event to a commercial endeavor, from a community and tourism-oriented affair to a profit-driven show and the waning participation of the community which is supposed to be frontliner of the celebration.”

“The usual active involvement and participation of the community has decreased,” the councilor said.   

Councilor Yangot, Jr., however said that the citizens’ active involvement in the festival would be restored once the city manages the annual Panagbenga.

“Income derived from the commercial portion of the Panagbenga will augment funds needed for social services, and other cultural and tourism-oriented programs, projects and activities,” the proposed resolution stated.

The city mayor was urged to “immediately convene a management team from the city government, and representatives in the community to prepare for Panagbenga 2015,” another resolution from  Yangot proposed. An early preparation would be appropriate, he added.   

The Baguio Flower Festival which started in 1995 was a flower-inspired celebration with community and school-based contingents, supposed to fill in the void in the activity-less month of February.

It later transferred hands from being privately-run to the city government and to the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation, Inc, within the 19-year span.

The activity has been drawing thousands of local and foreign tourists to the city yearly, later surpassing the 1.5 million count mark during the past flower festival.

The highlights of the celebration are the grand streetdancing and floral float parade usually done during the third weekend of February, with visitors filling up hotels and even private houses, booking up to five months in advance.