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.
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