Opera singer to grace city's Fil-Jap Friendship Day

THE EXECUTIVE Committee of the 2017 Philippines-Japan Friendship Day Celebration in the city for the past few weeks has been working round the clock to insure the special event will be more exciting, more joyful and more meaningful.

The national episode with an international significance is set on July 23, this month.

Japanese Embassy dignitaries and ranking city government officials led by City Mayor Mauricio Domogan have been invited to lead in the various activities for the day.

Mieke Tsurusawa, an international opera vocalist from the Land of the Rising Sun, courtesy of the Japanese Embassy, will also grace the occasion. She will dish out a repertoire of classical selection dedicated to music lovers during the cultural show of the celebration.

The citywide celebration formally starts at 9 o’clock in the morning with a prayer, floral offering and a candle light ceremony to be held at the Fil-Japanese Memorial Park along Gov. Pack Road. Aside from the Japanese and city government officials senior citizens from the Baguio Elderly Assembly (BEA) led by Betty Fangasan, City Social Welfare and Development Office seriously considered the region’s quest for autonomy, so unlike in Muslim Mindanao where several armed groups remained to keep the government on its toes even when the MILF or MNLF had signed a peace pact.

Eventually, the cottage was assigned to the regional office of the Philippine Information Agency. True to its mandate of information sharing, the PIA made good use of the office and compound where the local media, local government and local private officials and all residents were welcome to discuss how community life should be, with or without visiting national government officials.

To provide substance to that priority need to enhance local ambience of a once-elitist structure, the PIA added a “dap-ay” where locals and Baguio visitors, from the President down to the ordinary Baguio citizen, were welcome to set up the traditional Baguio bonfire, lie on the grass (as that pictorial of some of the city’s American founding fathers did), hold press conferences and even receptions for weddings, birthdays and baptisms, occasions far more fitting than the present plan to redesign it and have it ready when a cabinet secretary and/or his minions come up for their rest and recreation.

Soon, the cottage will be out of our reach, we Baguio boys and girls. The notice has been received that officials from Manila are serious in their plan to make the building - like the other national government buildings here - exclusive to them and their cohorts and officemates- as their hotel or inn, yet closed for most of the year., especially to us who grew up in Baguio and are living up to its problems and fears.

Come to think of it, Baguio has been at the losing end over these national government properties and cottages that cover a sizable portion of Baguio yet are inaccessible to those from Baguio. There was the Cosalan Bill that was supposed to mandate the national government to provide one half of the annual budget of the city government. This was in lieu of the national government’s non-payment of taxes over its properties that include the Camp John Hay, the Court of Appeals, Supreme Court and the Cabinet Hill and the Teachers’ Camp.

That law was never fully implemented. Right now, the city government is at a loss on how to collect its due from the national government for the operation of the Camp John Hay. While camp authorities agreed that the city’s purchase of the GSIS-owned Baguio Convention Center and the mini-forest beside it would come from the city’s share from the rentals over the former U.S. military facility, this deal never materialized, with the (DSWD) officer and yours truly will join the memorial rites Arnel Cabanisas, Executive Director of the Fil-Japanese Foindation, Inc. Northern Luzon said, officers and members of the Foundation headed by its chairman Carlos Teraoka will be at the helm of the offering sked.

Suffice it to say, that this year's FilJapanese "tomodochi day" observance in our city is a revival edition of the grand historic endeavor. The BEACSWDO-OSCA in partnership with the city administration and the Fil-Japanese Foundation in cooperation with the city administration and the FilJapanese Foundation in cooperation with the National Correspondents Club of Baguio (NCCB) initiated and coordinated the first of its kind way city ending up paying, including the interests.

However short-changed the city was, I sighed in relief over the city’s taking jurisdiction over the mini-forest which has become a rarity in what was once called a “City of Pines”. Shoemart, the giant mall chain, wanted to purchase the miniforest and turn it into four multi-story buildings it curiously wanted to call “Baguio Air Residences”.

Elementary school pupils wrote then President Gloria Arroyo asking her to tell GSIS not to sell the pine forest to SM. The kids had their letters enlarged and hung the tarpaulins on the pine area while sending the originals to the Office of the President.

That move was followed up by the Igorot Global Organization which, during its forum in Ifugao, came up with a resolution asking GSIS to spare the pine lot and open area, if only to enable Baguio’s children to see what a pine tree looks like and what it means to have open spaces in a resort city like theirs.

Perhaps it is high-time for kids of Baguio to again write and ask national authorities to spare the Cordillera House from being turned into a hotel for national government officials.

Let the building housing the PIA office be, as a “dap-ay”, a dialogue center for Baguio residents and visitors from Imperial Manila, instead of closing it and making it an exclusive hotel for the powers-that-be from down there.

Such request is nothing compared to the privilege the national government is enjoying over its vast landholdings in Baguio.

At the same time, perhaps national secretaries can be convinced to stop knocking down and destroying the historic row of identical buildings that once composed Cabinet Hill, as these were and are for the Cabinet Secretaries of the land.

Without any sense of history and heritage, previous cabinet secretaries had the original buildings destroyed and in their place installed monstrosities of concrete.

Before everything goes, perhaps the Baguio City Council can come up with a resolution -- as it did for the preservation of the use of the PIAcommunity set-up -- asking the Department of Justice to preserve the original architecture, including the fine wood paneling inside the secretary’s cottage at Cabinet Hill. (mondaxbench@yahoo.com for comments.)

-o0oGreetings to Joshua and Josea Dizon who, like their father, Dr. Marcelino, are growing up as the Baguio boy and girl should, sharing what they have in terms of incentives for their victories as athletes to those in need. back in 2009. It was a successful undertaking as part of the Baguio Charter Day Centennial Anniversary program. The BEA officers from the United States Armed Forces of the Philippines (VFP, Baguio District) Federation of Baguio Senior Citizens Associations (FBASECA), Philippine Government Retirees Association, Baguio Chapter (PGREA) together with Hiro san several months before about the celebration journeyed to Manila and met with Japanese Embassy officials about the celebration. Happily, we got the Embassy's approval to proceed with the activity. Yours truly and the late Engr. Leopoldo Escaño, former FJF Executive Director worked hand in hand to manage the affair. With the same set of sponsor, the Fil-Japanese Friendship Day program was held in 2011 to 2014. Because of the sudden departure of Engr. Escaño, the annual celebration was suspended momentarily until Exec. Director Cabanisas requested us to revive the celebration in the city following the format of the past years. This is the true picture of the "tomadachi day" celebration in Magandang Baguio.

As mentioned earlier, part I of the July 23rd program is the memorial service. Part II of the celebration will take place at the Baguio City National High School Auditorium starting at 1 o'clock in the afternoon with a photo exhibit. The salient parts of the "Friendship" program and cultural show include the invocation by the faculty club of the Kiddos Kingdom International School (KKIS); the entry of the colors by Boy and Girl Scouts color bearers, the singing of the Pambansang Awit, the National Anthem of Japan and the Baguio Hymn led by CSWDO staffers and Day Care Center teachers. Hon. Teraoka, Chairman of the FJ Foundation will give the welcome remarks followed by an intermission no. from pupils of KKIS. City Mayor Domogan will deliver his greetings and inspirational message. After his talk, the presentation, march and coronation ceremonies honoring the Friendship Day Muses will take the center stage. To be crowned are Miss Friendship, Miss Peace and Miss Solidarity, from the FJF, BCNHS, and the BSP Baguio City Council respectively. After the "potongan" ceremony, the distinguished guest of honor and speaker from the Japanese Embassy will be introduced Irene B. Hamada, Ph.D. The cultural presentation follows after the speech of the honored guest. Sonny Casuga from FBASECA will render a "harana" dedicated to the Muses and their Escorts. PGRA will render a chorus number. The highland Igorot tribal dancers from the National Institute of Information and Technology will take on the stage with select Cordillera dances; the Baguio Cosplay Group presentation will follow. At least two popular provincial folk dances will be presented by the BCNHS performing arts group while the FJF Abong singer will showcase Japanese songs.

As added luster to the occasion, Miss Tsurusawa the versatile opera vocalist will charm and entertain us with special songs. This is the first time in the history of the special event that a singer of her caliber is included in the program. Another highlight of the day's offering is the presentation of awards and recognition to premier supporters and patrons of the celebration. Leading the awardees are tri-media organizations in the city. The roll of honor is led by ABS CBN TV Patrol Northern Luzon, Baguio Midland Courier, Sun*Star Baguio and Bombo Radyo Philippines, Baguio Station DZWX. The founding members of the celebration will also be cited.

A special free raffle with handsome prizes will be held before the closing "pasasalamat" remarks of Atty. Allyson Locano. The program ends with the "Fellowhsip Ring." Yours truly and Myrna Valencerina, a staff member from the CSWDO will co-emcee the program. Again, join us in the celebration and in our hourney to lasting Fil-Japanese brotherhood. Remeber for always that "peace and solidairt is our key to prosperity."