~Start of Email~

Thursday, March 11, 2010 7:29 AM
From: “BORJ MACALINTAL – BORBONANON”
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To: tagaborbon

A CHALLENGE TO OUR LOCAL POLITICIANS

Long and forgotten, far barrios and sitios are most often forgotten. Some can even associate the remote sitios in the mountain areas as history. It’s as if, some barrios in our municipality are just nothing but milked cows. Wala koy gipasabot ha!

Battlecry of the poor… WHERE ARE OUR LEADERS!

Now that election is coming, I just want to share my sentiments and I advised every reader not to unravel my expressions as politically motivated — kay dili ra ba gyud! Ganahan lang ko mohatag sa akong opinion diri sa borbon website (free expression) hoping that our future leaders ‘if they happen to read my blog’ will consider and include these in their agendas.

And I want to discuss mainly the forgotten remote barrios of the Municipality of Borbon. This I want to share to our future leaders…“Yet, some of the mountain barrios in our municipality explodes with so much natural beauty, natural resources, it’s been a while that we ignore its potentials which, if we develop, with respect to the environment – it will create enormous local economic activity to help our barrio folks”.

— Borbon Folk—

Looking back to the pictures I saw in this website and to the places I knew… the Nonoc Cave, the Silmugi River, Dao Reforestation, Lunas Mountain View and some unexplored scenery in Bagacay and going as far as Bili, Clavera & San Jose, etc.

Yeah, I do sound like one politician campaigning for my political agenda this coming May, 2010 Election, but nah? I am just an ordinary citizen who wishes to make amend with our future or incumbent local leaders now that the heat of the election is felt…to please consider giving priorities to our barrio folks para mahatagan sad tawn sila ug gamay nga panginabuhian. Pastilan jud!

Anyway, I am not talking about giving them fish… but to lead them in the fishing ground where fishes are abundant, as an old saying goes… mora ug lahi man siguro to nga panultihon!

Sa atong mga umaabot nga haligi sa lungsod, I am appealing in behalf of the barrio folks to allocate some budget for the development and promotion of our natural beauties para mamahimo kining tourist destinations which would somehow generate livelihood (local jobs) in the process.

To give you a tour of my experiences at the barrio, please allow me to take you back down memory lane.

As an initial contribution to this Taga-Borbon website, let me bring you to my beautiful Barrio Kaligdag Bugon – the land of the kamuting-kahoy and home of the takyong (tree snail)…lol. Enjoy!

To go there, you need to ride all types of public transpo available – from bus to jeep to tricycle. The long journey to my barrio will end with this habal-habal ride……traversing the long and winding hagunoyan barangay road.

In fairness ha, the last time I visited my barrio was that I noticed a “putol-putol” nga construction of cemented road but reaching as far as eskina sa lumboy only… but doesn’t even reach half the stetch of lubak-lubak nga dalan padulong sa among plaza.

In my barrio, there’s plenty of bahay kubo (read: poverty). But God has always spared my place from any calamities. His blessing to my barrio is never-ending. Naks… He blessed us with plenty of coconut trees to make copra…hahaha… and overflowing with the bounty of harvest time, kamunggay, agbate, okra ug uban pa.

BARRIO LIVELIHOOD
Gathering of tuba (coconut wine), coming from the coconut trees are typical jobs in my barrio. Farming and the old-school sabong kada Domingo is also classical… hahaha

THE BARRIOTIC LIFESTYLE
I remember our usual gimikan will be at the ‘bungtod ug kakahuyan’ where your voice will reverberate even as you speak with your barkadas. Our playground was at the katubhan and we play all sorts of games during our youth. And the water system stem from the spring… mag sag-ub lang ug tubig para imnon ug ilung-ag… didn’t even know the more conservative consumption of mineral water coming from France (Evian or Volvic) in my old days. And our typical cocina was the classic clay pot — or we used to call ‘kon’ and we’ll gather dry woods to create fire.

LEISURE AND ACTIVITIES
Beach bumming, picnic, stroll sa kabukiran and sleep under the shades of mammoth mahogany trees.

Today, my barrio is still the barrio I used to know 15 years ago. No changes and seem like forgotten by our leaders who had promised for various development in every political campaigns and in every elections ‘to come’.

Each year, there are millions of pesos allocated for municipal projects like road widening, repairs and infrastructures but only to the selected fews. Pastilan jud!

Anyway, I still believe that time will come that our leaders will start to focus their attention sa atong mga taga-barrio. I have reason to believe that Borbon has so much to offer for tourism programs. We’re rich in natural resources… we have unexplored caves, white beaches, subterranean rivers, rock formations, waterfalls and diving sites.

Hellooo DOT (Department of Tourism) where are you? Hellooo local leaders, wake up!

I have high dreams for my barrio (and for every barrio in the Municipality of Borbon too) – conducive school facilities, health care for everyone, stable supply of electricity, access to clean water, computers and access to internet at por Diyos por Santo!!! And a suitable road going to my barrio… para dili na intawon magkalapok akong sapatos pagtungas nako didto sa amoa puhon.

I hope you enjoy a quick trip to my barrio Kaligdag-Bugon, I shall visit the place next summer, if you wish to join, let me know, KKB tayo.

Bottom line: WAKE UP EVERYONE!

Author’s Name: Borj—Barrio Kaligdag-Bugon

~End of Email~

BIG THANKS to our local president, Ms. Alma Mondigo and the following hardworking volunteers for making these kids happy and full. Without our active volunteers who set aside some of their valuable time to for this community outreach project, our TAGA-BORBON Organization noble ideas will not be possible.

Emma Mondigo
Mark Noynay
Jerome Monsanto
Louie Lauron
Jake Monsanto
Tetchienie Iway
Richie Iway
Riza Flores
Susan Damayo
Alexeber Ejares
Harry Antigua
Alma Mondigo
Felix Mundo (3rd day @ Bagacay)

Thanks to the teachers at the School for having us around.

We hope that we can continue this project with the support of Borbonanons around the world. If you are interested to take part with this project, please contact us using the Contact Form below or send us an email at tagaborbon[@]yahoo[.]com.

Thanks to Alma as well for providing us these photos.

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BIG THANKS to the following volunteers for without them, this community outreach project of our TAGA-BORBON Organization will not be possible.

Emma Mondigo
Mark Noynay
Jerome Monsanto
Louie Lauron
Jake Monsanto
Tetchienie Iway
Richie Iway
Riza Flores
Susan Damayo
Alexeber Ejares
Harry Antigua
Alma Mondigo
Felix Mundo (3rd day @ Bagacay)

Thanks to the teachers at Saling-it Primary School for having us around.

We hope that we can continue this project with the support of Borbonanons around the world. If you are interested to take part with this project, please contact us using the Contact Form below or send us an email at tagaborbon[@]yahoo[.]com.

Thanks to Alma as well for providing us these photos.

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

123►