Words of Wisdom from CCP Gawad Sining Winners (By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman)

By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

Words of Wisdom

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“SA BUHAY, marami na po akong nagawang desisyon, karamihan tama,mangilan-ngilan mali,” (In life, I’ve made many decisions, majority were right, a few were wrong), said Nora Villamayor -- better known as the “Superstar” Nora Aunor -- when she accepted her award at the latest Gawad Cultural Center for the Philippines (CCP) Para sa Sining for Film and Broadcast Arts.

  

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AMONG the Gawad CCP honorees this year were Armida-Siguion Reyna, Ricky Lee, Nora Aunor and Tony Mabesa.

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Her fans’ cheers were heard across the auditorium, proof that her star power still shines 48 years after she first came to national attention when she won the singing show Tawag ng Tanghalan in 1967. After the ceremony, her legion of supporters crowded the Superstar. It caused a commotion.

Gawad Sining is the highest award given by the CCP and can be considered the second highest recognition to being named a National Artist. It could be remembered that Ms. Aunor was at one point rejected in the National Artist list because she was allegedly convicted of drug abuse.

The actress, looking regal in a white terno, said the best decision she ever made was to pursue her craft. 

“Ang pinakatamang desisyon ko ay umarte at maglingkod sa bayan bilang artista. Ang propesyon na ito ang nagbigay sa akin ng sakit, dusa, at paghihirap pero ang pag-arte ang nagbigay din sa akin ng katuwaan. (The best decision I made was to act and serve the country as an artist. This profession gave me pain, heartache, and trouble but acting also gave me joy).”

Ms. Aunor is a multi-awarded Filipina actress, singer, and producer who started her career in the late 1960s. She stood out from the bevy of mestiza beauties who were popular at the time thanks to her distinct Filipina features. She had a series of hit songs, topbilled TV shows and films, stage plays, and concerts.

When asked how she wanted to be remembered she said, “Maalala nila bilang ako. Isang mang-aawit from the province, nakipagsapalaran para sa pamilya. (To be remembered as who I am, a simple singer from the province who gambled for my family).”

One of the night’s other awardees who worked with Ms. Aunor was Ricardo “Ricky” Lee. He was conferred the award for Literature. Mr. Lee was the screenwriter of the 1982 Ishmael Bernal movie Himala, which stared Ms. Aunor. Among many of his other works are books like Para Kay B, Amapola, Batang Lansangan, and Trip to Quiapo; and screenplays forJaguar, Salome, Moral, Macho Dancer, Andrea, Paano Ba Ang Maging Isang Ina?, Muro-Ami, and Bagong Buwan, among many others. He also wrote the popular plays Pitik-Bulag sa Buwan ng Pebrero and DH (Domestic Helper).

Both Aunor and Lee said they came from poor families, but they fought long and hard to get to where they are now. Mr. Lee mentioned he worked in all kinds of jobs -- including being a waiter -- but at the end of the day, he said he would always find time to do what he loves, and that was to write.

“Whether I am sick or not, inspired or not, happy or sad, kapag sulat ka nang sulat natututo ka. (When you keep on writing, you eventually learn). It’s very exhilarating na kapag nakapagsulat ka, dinugo ka sa pagsusulat and then nabuo mo ang sinusulat mo, you’re one with the world, may feeling ka na nasa langit. Nakahalo ka sa lahat ng bagay sa mundo, shapeless, formless ka. (It’s very exhilarating when you write, you bleed as you write, then complete a story; you are one with the world, feel like you are in heaven. You are one with everything in the world, you are shapeless, formless).”

Another Gawad CCP Para sa Sining Literature awardee was Leoncio P. Deriada, who like, Mr. Lee, championed the use of the Filipino and other Philippine languages in his writings.

A Palanca Hall of Fame recipient for his works in Filipino, English, and Hiligaynon, his advice to young writers is to find their own voice. He said the best language to write in is your mother tongue, because it spares you the burden of committing grammatical errors. Mr. Deriada is considered the Father of Contemporary Literature in Western Visayas. His major contributions led to a rebirth of the then-dying art of writing and reading in the vernacular in the 1980s. He urged the use of Kinaray-a, Aklanon, and Hiligaynon languages.

PASSION
It all boils down to passion and pursuit of excellence all the awardees have shown through the years.

In a wheelchair and barely able to speak, Armida Siguion-Reyna received the award for Pagtataguyod sa Kultura (Promotion of Culture).

In a taped video interview shown at the award ceremony, she said it’s not about the money. “Or fame. It’s all about doing what makes you happy, which allows you to endure the hardships of the profession.”

A host, actress, producer, and champion against TV and film censorship, she is perhaps best known for her television show Aawitan Kita which focused on local musical forms like the kundiman. The show, which started in the 1970s, aired for three decades. “It was considered bakya (cheap) in the ’70s until 1981, back when Filipino singers where singing foreign songs,” her son Carlitos Siguion-Reyna said on her behalf. But the show prevailed because it was one of the pioneers in the promotion of Philippine culture on television.

The feisty singer was the chairwoman of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board during former President Joseph “Erap” E. Estrada’s short term.

DANCE, MUSIC, DESIGN
Ms. Aunor, Mr. Lee, Mr. Deriada and Ms. Siguion-Reyna were just four of the many artists who were honored on the afternoon of Sept. 17 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). 

Denisa Reyes received the Gawad CCP for Dance. The younger sister of Ballet Philippines’ founder Alice Reyes, she has made her own contributions to Philippine dance by giving profound meaning and endless possibilities to contemporary dance, infusing and presenting current local issues into her dances.

Honored for her contributions in the field of Music was Fides Cuyugan-Asensio, who, in a career spanning six decades, is an icon in the development of opera and musical theater in the country. Through the nonprofit organization Music Theater Foundation of the Philippines which she established, Ms. Asencio helps young classical singers hone their talents.

Antonio Mabesa was honored for his prolific work in Theater -- his latest production,Haring Lear, is his 170^th, unsurprising considering that he has been working in theater for 70 years. Among his major contributions is the establishment of the theater group Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, which is celebrating its 40^th anniversary. 

Roberto Chabet, the CCP’s first curator and credited for introducing conceptual art into the Philippine art scene, was honored posthumously for his work in the Visual Arts. He also founded the 13 Artists Exhibit/Awards.

Paulo Alcazaren -- the brains behind Iloilo’s Promenade, Metro Manila’s Rajah Sulayman park, Ortigas Park, and Rizal Park, and many others -- was honored for Architecture. He highlights Filipino aesthetics and calls for the support for it, or else “we’ll face a future without genuine Filipino architecture, just second-rate trying hard copycat buildings.”

Couturier Ben Farrales received the Gawad CCP for Design. He highlighted and opened new doors for the Muslim culture to be appreciated here and abroad when he decided to infuse its aesthetic into his fashion designs. “When you have talent, you’ll never lose, ” he said.

Credited for founding and sustaining the 34-year-old program at the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Music and UP Dance Company, Basilio Esteban Villarus received the Gawad CCP for Research. “You have to go out, and think out of the box, to see what is happening in the world,” he said when asked where he gets his inspiration.

Two organizations were also honored that day. The Talaandig School of Living Tradition received the Gawad CCP for Cultural Work. The preschool has been preserving and teaching the dying culture of the Talaandig tribe through chanting, storytelling, and instrument playing. The Missionary Society of St. Columban received the Tanging Parangal, a special citation for its effort to revive, refurbish, and preserve Malate Church, which is one of the oldest churches in the country and was home to the first Filipino parish priest.

The Gawad CCP Para sa Sining is given every three years to exceptional artists who have made a significant contribution to their respective art form. Organizations and cultural workers who help in enriching the Philippine art are also recognized.

The School of Life: Learning Outside the Classroom (By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman)

Weekender

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Posted on September 17, 2015 06:18:00 PM

By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

The School of Life:
Learning outside the classroom

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THERE’S more to a child’s education than ABCs and 123s. In the words of a genius, Albert Einstein, who once did poorly in school, “learning is not a product of schooling, but the lifelong attempt to acquire it.”

Nico Fos and Kristoff Diaz at Kapitbahayan Elementary School.

Beyond the formal teachings in schools, lifelong lessons that would empower and guide the children once they go outside the “real world” should also be given emphasis. From social media and stress to bullying and peer pressure, children today are vulnerable to walking on the wrong path, no thanks to these bad influences seeping in from the “outside world.”

This is where interventions come in.

Take the case of Kristoff Zyrell Shawn M. Diaz. His father is an overseas Filipino worker. His mother juggles her daytime job and her domestic duties. He grew up with his grandparents. Like any other kid, he enjoyed playing with his friends. But he admitted he liked to pick fights with his classmates. At nine years old, he just recently learned how to read. A quarrelsome boy and a late bloomer he was, never an achiever in his academic class.

But there was potential in Kristoff, as Nico M. Fos, a grade school teacher at the Kapitbahayan Elementary School in Navotas, realized. At 22 and a fresh graduate of AB English, Mr. Fos decided to pursue his passion: to teach kids. He is one of the teacher-fellows at Teach for the Philippines, a nongovernmental organization that encourages young professionals and fresh graduates to volunteer as teachers at public schools.

Teach for the Philippines currently has 140 teachers. A teacher-fellow has a two-year contract. The organization recruits new, young teachers whenever a contract ends.

“When I am teaching, my students learn, but in teaching, I also learn in return,” Mr. Fos, adding that his class, including Kristoff, taught him persistence and how to be a better version of oneself.

Mr. Fos and his student underwent a series of workshops and modules under the Coordinates for Life, a flagship education program under the partnership of Teach for the Philippines and Coca-Cola Fomento Economico Mexicano (FEMSA), a Mexican multinational beverage and retail company and the local distributor of Coca-Cola products. FEMSA developed the program in 2013.

LIFE LESSONS
“Kids today are faced with difficult decisions that may be life-threatening or life-changing. The program aims to get children to make the right choices in life. It involves giving them tool kits...to be able to run their life in the right way,” said Juan C. Dominguez, Coca-Cola FEMSA Asian division corporate affairs director.

The Coordinates for Life program taps 16 life skills like assertiveness, empathy, understanding consequences, stress and anger management, and other holistic development modules fit for children going through various stages in life. It traces its roots in Mexico and has expanded to neighboring South American countries including Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Brazil.

In the Philippines, the program had a pilot run in Quezon City last year. Today, it is working with 15 public schools in Metro Manila, where there are Teach for the Philippines teacher volunteers.

Coordinates for Life, which is an intervention program incorporated in the current curriculum, has so far involved 2,178 elementary students and 304 teachers and parents.

“It takes a village to raise a child. Learning shouldn’t be confined within the corners of a classroom,” said Teach for the Philippines founder Clarissa L. Delgado. The organization aims a 100% access to education nationwide by 2050.

CHALLENGES AND GOALS
The program has achieved considerable success in Latin America, but Coordinates for Life isn’t a one-size-fits-all program. “It (the module) was originally [written] in Spanish and Portuguese. Obviously, there’s a need to adapt to English and Taglish. We also normally work with middle schoolchildren in grades VII and VIII, because where we ran the program in South America, that’s...the critical stages when the kids leave school,” Mr. Dominguez said of the program’s challenges.

In the Philippines, the biggest test was to accommodate the schedules of the teacher-fellows who work full-time elsewhere. They are encouraged to incorporate the skills in the subjects they teach, or to teach them on weekends.

The program aims to be a component of the Department of Education and the local governments “so that it becomes part of the patrimony of the Filipino people,” Mr. Dominguez said.

A bit timid to strangers, Kristoff said he has changed since the program. He started the curriculum when he was in grade III. Coordinates for Life targets Filipino pupils grades III to V. The modules are integrated within the subjects or the students are advised to take weekend classes. Kristoff was happy to oblige. He said he has stopped fighting friends and classmates. He has learned to love books too. He said likes reading “Lolo Ding,” a children’s story about a boy and his grandpa. Kristoff, after all, grew up with his grandparents.

Learning empowers not only the children but also their schoolteachers and their mothers, who are the children’s first and best teachers. “It has a multiplier effect,” said Mr. Dominguez, “it pays forward.”

At Coordinates for Life, parents and educators also undergo trainings. Marivel S. Berangel, 44, a homemaker, is one of the parents who attended a series of weekend seminars on life skills. She couldn’t think of a better way to spend her Saturdays than to learn. She said she wanted to discover basic life skills that she would share with her daughter. Her child, Roxanne, 8, is in grade IV at the Kapitbahayan Elementary School in Navotas. She said she’s now mindful in preparing a healthy baon (meal) for Roxanne. She has also limited her from using social media. Roxanne has her own cell phone.

Next year, the Teach for the Philippines will go out of Metro Manila, further to Mindanao, in Cagayan de Oro and Siargao, where it would also take the Coordinates for Life program to help build other communities. After all, anyone can be a teacher and everyone is a student of life.

My Mama Has Breast Cancer

Having breast cancer

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IT HAS BEEN 16 years, but GMA actor Rocco Nacino can’t help but weep whenever he remembers the day his mother, Linda, was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

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In a press conference for Avon’s I Share the Fight Against Breast Cancer awareness campaign on Sept. 8, Mr. Nacino was emotional when he narrated his mother’s story. It was 1999, they were living in Singapore. He was only 12 years old. His mother was 35 when she found out she was sick. It was a test of faith.

“I was watching TV on my belly when I touched something on my breast. I had it tested. It was cancer,” said Ms. Nacino, “Ironically, I took mammogram and [had] ultrasound checkups every year. It just goes to show no one is exempted.”

Though she did not suffer hair loss during her treatment, she did undergo five years of oral chemo, radiation, and surgery. “I consider myself strong because I’d go to a hospital in Singapore alone,” she said. She had to conceal any sign of weakness when in front of her children and husband.

Her family returned to the Philippines for her surgery, then decided to stay here for good. “There’s no place like home. Iba pa din ang support group, like my sisters and relatives,nandito sa Pilipinas (It is different when your support group, like my sisters and relatives, is in the Philippines),” she said.

With prayers and support from loved ones, she eventually overcame cancer.

Now 51, Ms. Nacino enjoys life to its fullest. Thankful for her second life, she and her son have made it a point to give back to the indigent, especially those with cancer. She toldBusinessWorld the family gives gift packs during Christmas. When her son became a TV actor -- he joined the talent search TV show Star Struck V in 2009 -- the gift packs grew bigger. Today, they hold thanksgiving parties at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH), among others.

“Volunteering to work at the PGH Breast Care Center was a humbling experience, to say the least. I was able to extend a hand to the breast cancer patients there by doing charting, checkups, and biopsies. I was able to practice my skills,” said Mr. Nacino, who, aside from being an actor, is also a registered nurse and an aspiring doctor.

This also prompted them to start the “Piso Para sa Chemo” (A Peso for Chemo) bottle campaign. The mother and son tandem gave an initial 200 water bottles to serve as piggy banks, distributing them to their family, friends, and Mr. Nacino’s fans. Since starting the campaign two months ago, they have collected P53,000 which has been donated to the PGH Breast Care Center.

Ms. Nacino and her son, along with GMA actress Jennylyn Mercado, are the ambassadors of Avon’s cancer awareness campaign that aims to empower cancer patients. As part of the program, there will be a fun run on Oct. 10 at the SM Mall of Asia, with PGH as the beneficiary.

“Beating breast cancer is tough, but we can be tougher. There’s life after cancer. Do not lose hope. Positive attitude helps in the healing process,” said Ms. Nacino. 

Focus

Posted on 08:22 PM, September 10, 2015

By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

Amid traffic, airport woes, will you ‘Visit the Philippines Again 2016?’

THERE will be 10 regular holidays and nine special non-working days in 2016, the Palace recently announced. Are you planning a Holy Week sojourn in Siquijor? Or would you rather stay in bed, read, and do a TV series marathon instead, because, alas, you’ve had enough of a travel “ adventure” already -- that is, the everyday traffic and exhausting LRT/MRT commute?

WILLING AMBASSADOR: Apl de Ap -- AFP

 It’s more fun in the Philippines that it deserves another visit, so said the Department of Tourism (DoT) and Tourism Promotions Board (TPB). Recently they announced next year’s travel campaign, “Visit the Philippines Again 2016.” And the government is targeting 10 million tourist arrivals in 2016.

But the more important issue is whether tourists are prepared for traveling in the Philippines as we know this discomfort.

TRAVEL CONDITIONS
The Philippines is a country (an archipelago at that) that could have long ago developed the complementary infrastructure for its geographical diversity -- with the same scope and vision committed by our colonizers, of all people. Today, it is broadly acknowledged that travel conditions have worsened through the decades -- with the amenities of vacationing established in the travel destinations but not in the trip itself.

To travel from point A to point B, one needs to get up early so as not to miss a flight because, chances are, traffic is heavy on all roads leading to the airport.

“People would really love to come to the Philippines but they are unable to come to the country because of the issue of access,” TPB chief operating officer Domingo Ramon C. Enerio III told reporters on the sidelines of a travel mart conference in February. But he also said these problems are “temporary setbacks” and expressed the hope that the Philippines would have the “best airport in the region” soon.

Because despite some recent improvements in the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), this airport continues to make the news in terms of its now-faulty infrastructure and still ranks among the worst in the world -- the eighth worst airport last year, according to the Wall St Cheat Sheet.

But improvements continue to be made. Early this year, the airport had a makeover--refurbished with new air conditioners, lights, ceiling, and flooring. And in July, its Terminal 3 opened a new transit lounge.

Outside Metro Manila, infrastructure projects are underway, aimed at lessening traffic, connecting regions, and opening new travel routes.

The influx of tourists is another (good) problem. According to the DoT, the “Visit the Philippines Year 2015” campaign drew in 2.26 million foreign tourists in the first half of the year. Earnings from tourism activities in the first six months amounted to P111.05 billion, the department also said, while jobs generated reached 4.9 million.

Mr. Enerio said the remaining “ber” months, being traditionally the peak season, is expected to generate more tourist arrivals. The DoT is targeting 5.5 million tourist arrivals this year.

 Where are they going to stay? Mr. Enerio said there are 8,000 new hotel rooms in Metro Manila alone. There are also new hotels in Iloilo that are ready for accommodation. For backpack travelers, the DoT has accredited homestay options in 29 tourist areas like Boracay and Baguio.

MUSIC VIDEO
The Philippines indeed offers much more, beyond Metro Manila’s congestion problems -- which unfortunately is where all stops are inevitable. But, yes, there’s more to offer in this “tropical paradise,” as some international travel magazines would tag us.

Where are the best diving spots to see our fish and corals in their abundance? There’s the municipality of Donsol (called the whale shark capital of the world) in the Bicol province of Sorsogon, Sabang Beach in Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro, and Coron in Palawan (called the wreck diving capital thanks to a sunken Japanese ship), and Tubbataha Reef in Palawan, a UNESCO World Heritage site (which unfortunately was damaged by a US Navy Ship two years ago).

To gather more tourists, the DoT and TPB are tapping personalities from a wide range of sectors to promote the Philippines and “to speak about the wonderful destinations we have in the country.”

 “It’s more fun in the Philippines. It feels like you’re in a dream,” Filipino-American rapper Apl de Ap (Allan Pineda Lindo) sang in his “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” music video, as featured in the travel/trade event Philippine Travel Exchange (PHITEX) on Sept. 2. That video may well be a followup to his 2009 song “Take Me to the Philippines,” also in partnership with the DoT.

“Apl de Ap is a willing ambassador. We’ll be seeing more of him in our tourism campaign. He wants to share to all the Filipinos who have been too long in the US [what the Philippines has to offer],” Mr. Enerio said

 Mr. Apl de Ap said he’s proud to be a Filipino and his tourism crusade includes encouraging foreigners and expats to visit the Philippines.

 While this year brought Pope Francis and One Direction to the Philippines, the lineup of events in 2016 will include, among others, Madrid Fusion Manila 2016 (this year’s convention was a sweet success) for foodies; Asian Tourism Forum and Routes Asia for businessmen; MTV Music Evolution and Malasimbo Music Festival for concertgoers and music lovers (plus, the Madonna will also come to Manila); and Ironman 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship for sports fans.

 Amid endless traffic tales and commuter woes, there is much beauty elsewhere in the Philippines even if that quality has vanished in the capital. Discover (or rediscover) the beauty of Palawan, Batanes, Marinduque or Dumaguete (the fourth best retirement place, according to Forbes magazine). Yes, the Philippines deserves another visit--again and again.

Arts & Leisure

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Posted on September 09, 2015 04:44:00 PM

Japan on your plate

Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

THERE SEEMS to be a tsunami (pun intended) of Japanese restaurants in Metro Manila. They range from ramen and soba joints to sushi and sashimi houses. Name it, it is here. But what makes the dishes appealing and appetizing to Filipinos?

  

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TENYA’s All-Star Tendon meal

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The culinary success of new Japanese restaurants in the city perhaps has its roots in two things. They offer unlimited servings of something -- rice, shredded cabbage, tea, or side dishes like pickled cucumber -- and boy do we love our unli (unlimited offers). Then, of course, the flavors hit home. Filipinos love anything deep-fried, golden, and crispy, which makes tempura a sure hit.

There are some things, though, that are not yet that familiar. 

Have you tried a serving of a crispy tempura paired with a bottle of Yakult or a teddy bear-shaped Japanese cake with ice cream? Perhaps not yet. 

Minus the airline ticket, these flavors of Japan are brought to your bowls at Tenya, a newly openedtempura and tendon restaurant at Market! Market! at Bonifacio Global City. 

Originally from Asakusa, Tokyo, its founder Yoshio Iwashita started Tenya in 1989 in a Yaesu underground mall at Tokyo station. Tenya comes from the root words “ten” (tendonand tempura) and “ya,” which means house or restaurant in Japanese. 

As its name implies, the restaurant champions its tempura (deep-fried seafood and vegetables) and tendon (a tempura served on donburi or rice bowl) that range from salmon and squid to shimeji (mushroom) tofu and beans.

FROM ASAKUSA TO MANILAAsakusa, though not the birthplace of tempura, is one of the homes of the best tempuramasters in Japan. It is unsurprising then that Tenya’s roots are from Asakusa. From a small eatery in an underground mall, the restaurant has grown to at least 15 branches across Tokyo alone. In the Philippines, it has three branches and still growing. According to general manager Iggy Ramos, two tempura masters traveled to Manila to teach the staff on how to make oishi (delicious) servings of tendon and tempura.

In a sea of Japanese restaurants in Metro Manila that offer almost the same menu, founder Mr. Iwashita said on its Web site that Tenya isn’t just another cookie cuttertempura house. “Quality is never an accident,” he said. Since 1989, Tenya’s manner of making tempura has not changed. It has maintained its quality and only upgrades its menu. It currently uses 350 ingredients to make 31 tempura and tendon items 

Tenya’s tempuras are light, crunchy, and juicy -- the way they should be. Mr. Ramos spilled the secret. Tenya’s kitchen has an auto fryer especially developed for the restaurant alone.

PRETTY AS A PICTUREEvery plate is a work of art in Japan. Tenya is no exception. The meals are pretty and look so appetizing they’d surely be wiped out faster than anyone could say “itadakimasu!” (Let’s eat!). 

The dishes served at the media launch on Sept. 3 were examples of the exquisite art of plating. Everything was Instagram worthy. The kiddie meal, for instance, features miniature versions of golden shrimp and salmon tempura and potato fries paired with a cup of rice bound by nori (seaweed) served on a cutesy toy car turned plate. It comes with a bottle of Yakult and a pair of teddy bear utensils. 

More than looking pretty, they pack a punch in terms of flavors.

For a grownup dish, the all-star tendon, one of the best-sellers, features a big and beautiful serving of crispy, crackling salmon, black tiger prawn, squid, kani stick, green beans, and mushroom tempura, on a bed of two cups of rice. 

The cameras love the desserts, too. They are as picture perfect as their taste. Tenya popularized the ningyo-yaki (molded Japanese cake) ice cream served with popcorn, vanilla ice cream, and a choice of Nutella or dulce de leche syrup. 

But if a sweet serving of ice cream is not your thing, there are juice popsicles which come in coconut lychee, lime, orange vanilla, and strawberry flavors. 

End (or start) your culinary trip to Japan with a kampai (cheers). Have a bottle or two ofsake, soda, beer, or Yakult and let your dining experience transport you to Asakusa. 

By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

Negros Oriental as water capital

HOME to 79 natural lakes and 451 rivers, and being an archipelago, thus surrounded by water, the Philippines faces a perennial water shortage.

  

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THE KABALIN-AN LAKE in Sibulan, Negros Oriental looks picture perfect thanks to its crystal clear water and tranquil ambiance. -- NICKKY FAUSTINE P. DE GUZMAN

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This is as much a public concern in the National Capital Region as it is down south, going by the Sun.Star’s report of a water shortage in portions of Cebu City and Talisay City last April. As if to affirm this situation, the Japan International Cooperation Agency has recommended the relocation of 500 households near a watershed to give way to a new dam, to prevent an anticipated water shortage in Metro Cebu by 2020.

This problem is being tackled in Cebu and elsewhere in the Visayas. “Water is important yet we look at it like there’s no problem. There is more to it than the water that comes from the faucet. Basta may connection ka okay na [as long as there is water connection, you think it’s already okay], but a lot is going on with water and that is the challenge with management,” University of the Philippines-Los Baños chancellor Rex Victor O. Cruz said during a media visit in Negros Oriental, upon the invitation of advocacy group Water Excellence Philippines (WEP). The invited journalists were acquainted with best practices in water management and conservation.

“There are more than 30 agencies engaged in water management, and yet what do we see? Why is there [a] crisis in Cebu or [in] Manila? It’s in the balancing act that we are not yet good [at],” the US-trained Mr. Cruz, who holds a doctorate in watershed management, also said.

The invited journalists were acquainted with best practices in water management and conservation.

“Water is the most critical yet the most under-advocated resource that we have. It encompasses everything -- food, agribusiness, health and sanitation, tourism, trade, education. We cannot do away with water yet no one is talking about it,” WEP director Amor Maclang, for her part, said.

ACCESS TO POTABLE WATERNegros Oriental, with its track record of water-resource management, is poised to become the country’s “water capital” as recommended by the WEP. Negros Oriental Gov. Roel R. Degamo had issued Executive Order No. 15-11 as a commitment to transform the province into a water capital. 

According to Mr. Cruz, the group had also considered Davao City and Cebu province in determining the location that would serve as the country’s water capital.

“Negros Oriental, it seems, has the highest per capita in terms of environmentalists,” Ms. Maclang, for her part, said. So the choice was obvious. The province has access to potable water and is home to 25 rivers and watersheds, 47 streams, and a number of waterfalls.

The Negros Oriental website noted the high access to potable water in the capital city of Dumaguete and five other municipalities. Water in this province is cheap, at least P100 per month, depending on the volume of use. Dumaguete has 100% potable water access, followed by Bacong with 98.9%, Amlan with 98.3%, San Jose with 96.1%, and Sibulan and Tanjay both with 95.3%. There is no private-owned water provider in the province, but the province’s 25 local government units (LGUs) supply water to the communities, said Joaquin de la Peña, chief of Negros Oriental’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.

Another advantage of the province, as Mr. Cruz points out, is the involvement of its academic community. Silliman University and Negros Oriental State University have been involved in water sustainability through their research and studies. In these areas, the province “has a science-based management, [and is] stakeholder-driven and LGU-driven,” Mr. Cruz also said.

Perhaps the most obvious attraction of Negros Oriental is its own capital. Dumaguete City remains a largely rural and laid-back town, with few establishments including the local malls and restaurants and four international business process outsourcing (BPO) offices. But the city’s access to potable water is 100%. And it has this distinction, according to Forbes magazine, of being the fifth best place in the world to retire. Other cities selected in that magazine poll are Cuenca in Ecuador, George Town in Malaysia, and Chiang Mai in Thailand, along with the Portuguese southern region of Algarve. The cost of living in Dumaguete City is an average below-1,000 USD only, which attracts expats to return.

Apart from the efforts of the academic community, the Negros Integrated Water Resources Management Council was organized in 2008 as an advisory body to protect, rehabilitate, and develop the province’s water, land, and other resources. Its initial budget of P3 million covering the next five years (until 2013) was allotted to meeting certain targets in terms of watershed profiling, water quality, and water management .

Another initiative is President Benigno S.C. Aquino III’s Executive Order No. 183 creating a single Negros region for the island that had been traditionally divided in terms of language and culture by its mountain range. 

The EO aims to “further accelerate the social and economic development of the cities and municipalities comprising the provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental and improve the delivery of public services in the aforementioned provinces” -- which happen to share the same protected resources such as the Ilog-Hilabangan River Basin, one of the biggest in the country. 

FORESTLANDBut where does Negros Occidental figure in this vying to become the country’s water capital?

“In natural resources management, the planning unit has to be consistent with the biological and physical process that is going on in land,” Mr. Cruz said, emphasizing the obvious that’s still taken for granted. “If you look at watershed, the boundaries  of watersheds will not really respect the boundaries of political units. They don’t coincide, and yet it may be better if the political boundaries coincide with the natural boundaries of the watershed.”

Among Negros Oriental’s advantage, besides its clean, accessible water system, is its forestland. Negros Oriental’s website cites a total forest area of 281,386 hectares, which constitute 52.09% of the total land area. This is further divided into unclassified forestlands of 63,091 hectares and classified forest lands of 218,295 hectares. “The classified forestlands include area established for reserves, timberland, national parks, game reserves, bird sanctuaries, watershed, and fishpond,” the website said.

“Negros Oriental has completed its forest management plans. It has planted [trees in] 65,000 hectares. It also has the biggest mechanized seedling nursery of 9.4 hectares,” said Charlie Fabre, head of the provincial government’s Provincial Environment Natural Resources Office. The mechanized nursery is projected to produce and accommodate 15 to 20 million seedlings every six months.

The province has 25 LGUs, 19 of which have already completed their solid waste management plans. It also has a program called Adapt a River involving the barangays and NGOs, urging a community administration of the province’s river system, including its regular cleanup.