KALIBO NEWS

by TERENCE TORIANO

Broadcast Executives Attend

Orientation On Broadcaster’s Manual

Some 30 broadcast executives in Region 6 underwent a 3-day orientation seminar on natural family planning using the broadcaster’s manual at the Kundutel Hotel in Bacolod City from Nov. 12 to 14, 2008. The Philippine NGO Council on Population Health and Welfare, Incorporated and the Population Commission (POPCOM) sponsored the orientation.

The orientation seminar is aimed to train broadcast station managers, program directors and senior anchors on the use of the Broad-caster’s Manual for Natural Family Planning to foster the advocacy on Responsible Parenthood.

PopCom Regional Director Vicente Molejona told participants that Responsible Parenthood and Natural Family Planning is another program to alleviate poverty in the long term through birth spacing of 3 to 5 years between children.

Molejona added that using natural ways of planning a family will not cost Filipino families living under the poverty line a single centavo but a massive information dissemination campaign and advocacy is needed to reach every homes.

Four Broadcast Executives from CBIS DYYM Ka-Tribu Radyo, RMN DYKR Radyo Agong, and RGMA-DYRU Super Radyo Kalibo are among the participants from Aklan.

Mayor Raymar Rebaldo Lauds Aklanons

Kalibo Mayor Raymar Rebaldo lauds Aklanons in the East Coast and West Coast areas of the United States for promoting the Ati-Atihan Festival in that country. They hold similar festivals in their adopted land done even indoors due to cold winter. They feature it during American festivities like the Cherry Blossom Festival and the Fourth of July US Independence day celebration.

Rebaldo, in an interview with CBIS Ka-Tribu Radyo stated that relatives, friends and former classmates abroad told him that Aklanons through church-based Fil-Am organizations, the Migrant Heritage Commission, the Philippine-American Community Partnership Foundation, and other similar groups are actively promoting in the United States the festival dubbed as the mother of Philippine Festivals, the Kalibo Sto. Niño Ati-Atihan.

Aside from the United States, the Sto. Niño Ati-Atihan Festival is also celebrated in Saudi Arabia as related to him by Ms. Mary Jane Tupas, Presidential Awardee of the Natatanging Bayani Award (OFW), and who is also an Aklanon head nurse in one of the largest hospitals.

The annual Kalibo Sto. Niño Ati-Atihan Festival is set during the 3rd week of January and cajoled tourists and balikbayans to attend and participate in Sto. Niño Ati-Atihan activities especially the street dancing.

The Kalibo Ati-Atihan Management Board (KAMB), an organization of Kalibo Municipal Officials and private persons is now busy in the preparation of the 2009 Kalibo Sto. Niño Ati-Atihan Festival celebration. /MP