Kalinga folks raise funds for ventilators

By Rocky Ngalob

BAGUIO CITY. Known for their strong indigenous values of collectivity, Indigenous Peoples (IP) of Kalinga invoked “Dagup or Chagup” through passing of the hat to Kalinga folks to raise funds for them to secure additional ventilators for their hospitals as precautionary measure for COVID - 19.

“Dagup is one of many inherent indigenous values of the Kalinga people. It is invoked in times of need wherein members of the community, in their volition, are called upon to pitch a helping hand for those who are in distress.

It eases burden of community members or families in times of crisis,” said National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), community sevelopment officer, and a Kalinga native, Mai Lani Labo.

“Dagup like binnadang in Mountain Province, is a non-reciprocal service of the IPs that is guided by good conscience. By nature and purpose, it is gratuitous and voluntary”, said Labo.

Realizing the dire need of their hospitals and the adverse and imminent effect of COVID – 19 should the virus enter their Province, Labo in her social media account, posted a simple message asking her fellow i-Kalingas if they could, in their own volition, spare small amount for the purpose of procuring ventilators and respirators for their hospitals.

Labo, together with her co-employees in NCIP - Kalinga, often times cook food for the frontliners and volunteers during the Enhance Community Quarantine (ECQ). She disclosed that they were cooking pancit at the time when the idea for an online ‘Dagup’ came out. “Actually the idea of posting online ‘Dagup’ for ventilators came out when, we ourselves, were performing dagup for the frontliners and volunteers”, explained Labo.

She recalled in her social media posting that a group of i-Kalingas in 2001, was able to produce a suction machine for their hospital invoking the indigenous values of ‘Dagup’. 

Her social media posting has reached out to hundreds of kind and good hearted donors from Kalinga.

As of this writing, the posting Kalinga dagup for ventilators by Labo, just a mere week-old, was able to receive pledges close to Php 200, 000 coming from the different corners of Kalinga and even overseas.        

A good quality standard Medical Ventilator has an approximated value of Php 350, 000 – 500, 000. Ventilator are said to be essential medical machines for the recovery and treatment of a patient who got inflicted with COVID – 19.

Kalinga, since the ECQ was imposed, due to their collective cooperation and strong customary precautionary values, has managed to ward its 46 Ancestral Domains from the COVID – 19.

Those who are willing to donate for the said endeavour may send their donations to Metrobank Account Number: 960-3-7926104-9 Kalinga-Tabuk branch.