Text vote tonight for Cordillera talents

BENCHWARMER
Ramon Dacawi

The Cordillera is without a party-list representative to the next congress. Nominees from other regions of parties which got at least two percent of all the votes cast under the party-list system in the last polls will represent or misrepresent us who are weak and “marginalized” in the national legislature.

We could have added two or more to the seven regular congressional representatives of the Cordillera had the sector parties with top nominees from our region mustered that crucial two percent vote ratio in the May 10 polls.

The top party list nominees from the Cordillera were Beverly Longid of Katribu, Engr. Lomino Kaniteng of Ang Minero and Ferdinand Dacquial of ALIM (Action League of Indigenous Masses).

Beverly is an activist whose roots are in Sagada, Mt. Province. Lomino, from Itogon town, heads the Benguet Small-scale Miners Federation, and Ferdinand is from Loakan, Baguio. All are qualified to represent their parties, which, sadly, did not make it to the list of winners, based on the newspaper reports.

It’s all over, water under the bridge. Except, perhaps, for the shouting or faint analysis overshadowed by unending discussions on the outcome of the main dish of the polls: déjà vu in Baguio with the return of the old guards, entry of youth leadership in Ifugao, or even the debacle of the “leading” mayoralty contenders in Itogon, Benguet.

Yet, mind you, the voting is not over, if you can just read on and shift attention to other talents of the Cordillera who are apolitical. Your attention –and vote – is of extreme urgency to a group and an individual who are vying tonight for semi-final slots in ABS-CBN’s “Pilipinas Got Talent”.

These talents need you to cast your vote through text starting 8:30 o’clock tonight when the text polls open. No need for registration, indelible ink, PCOS machines,voter’s ID, age eligibility or whatever. You qualify to vote as long as you have a cellphone with a load - be it yours your sister’s, your parents’ or your friend’s. You can text vote as many times as you want, using the same SIM/number and the votes will be counted as many times.

The Cordillera group semi-finalist is Metamorphosis, a dance troupe led by Karen Navarete-Anton. She’s the wife of consistent international car racing champion and Baguio boy Carlos Anton. Metamorphosis drew the top performing artists from the Aloha Philippines, University of Baguio, University of the Cordilleras, St. Louis University, Pines City Colleges and University of the Philippines-Baguio.

To vote for Metamorphosis, text PGT META and send to 2331 for Globe, TM, Sun Cellular and Bayan Phone Extra. For bulk voting (eight votes per text): Text PGT8 META and send to 2366 for Smart and Sun Cellular.

The Cordillera individual semi-finalist is 22-year old Ingrid Payaket, an Ibaloi singing sensation who traces her roots to Kabayan town. Payaket was with the glee club of the SLU Center for Culture and the Arts when Marky Cielo was with the dance troupe of the same center. The late Cielo became the first known Igorot film actor after winning the reality talent competition Starstruck in 2006.

To vote for Payaket: Text PGT INGRID and send to 2331 for Globe, TM, Sun Cellular and Bayan Phone Extra subscribers, and 231 for Smart and Talk ‘N Text subscribers. Bulk voting: Text PGT3 INGRID to 2366. Voting will be from 8:30 tonight (June 5) until 8:30 p.m. Sunday (June 6).
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Again, the news last Sunday was found on the obituary page. Johnny Ofo-ob, until recently a public school principal, was looking good in that card thanking all the people who, in their own way, paid tribute to a friend, a colleague, a father, a benefactor or, in other ways, knew him

I knew him as an advocate of tot baseball, even if the Pines City Little League he collaborated with others eventually fizzled out, temporarily putting aside a common dream for a world-class team from the Cordillera.

It was a good try, even if the most the local league could go was mounting the Eugene Pucay Cup in honor of the diminutive Ibaloi patriarch and former city councilor and hosting once the national series.

I learned of Johnny’s passing from the card of thanks and missed the wake, particularly the anecdotes shared by those traveled with him on this mortal plane. As then principal of Quezon Elementary School, he was part of the team which came up with a variety show to help teachers who were afflicted with the big C. Little did he know that leukemia would later take its toll. .

Above Johnny’s card of thanks was that of Albert Kis-ing, my senior at the University of Baguio who graduated when the university was still Baguio Tech.

This Monday morning, Alicia Castro, wife of Baguio musician Tom Castro, will be laid to rest here. She was 53 when she succumbed to cancer, in Aruba where the couple worked. for years. Between her hotel job and raising four kids with Tom, Alicia turned to ministering to the spiritual needs of fellow expatriates, many of whom are Filipinos. Tom brought her home last week. Her remains lie in state at Chapel A of La Paz Funeral Homes along Naguilian Rd. (email: mondaxbench@yahoo.com).