Entrepreneurial Farmer

Is It Fun To Celebrate Defeat?

by Ambrosio R. Villorente

On March 23, Aklan province will celebrate 19 Martyrs. Ever since I first attended this annual celebration until last year, what I saw were the dramatization of what the Spanish soldiers did to our fellow Aklanons. What were portrayed were the humiliating, inhuman treatments to our people.

While the celebration demonstrated the hardship, the sacrifices of our people in order to obtain freedom, it is so pitiful, so revolting and very discouraging. It is not fun to celebrate defeat, very ugly, very sad.

Can we change? Can we introduce innovation in our celebration that will promote among our young generation the feeling of equality with any race? The present celebration portrays the feeling of inferiority among the Pilipinos, how the Spanish soldiers abused the Pilipinos.

Can we change the title of the celebration of “19 Martyrs” to “19 Heroes”? On this manner of celebration, we will extol those who fought to liberate the Philippines from Spanish domination They will be truly honored and become models of nationalism among our people.

Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia which were called French Indo China were under the French for 500 years. After the French, Vietnam was under the United States for 20 years. But Vietnam does not celebrate her defeats. She celebrates her victories. Vietnam’s war museum does not exhibit its defeats. What are exhibited are destroyed US war planes and battleships Vietnamese conquered. It indicates Vietnamese determination to win the struggle against colonialism.

The Japanese in World War II surrendered to the Allied powers after Atomic bombs were dropped in Nagasaki and Heroshima. However, the exhibits in Heroshima City are the negative effects of the Atomic Bombs to convey to the people that the Americans are bad and the Japanese people are kind. What the Japanese soldiers did in Banga, Aklan when they declared “Juez de Kotsilyo” on October 23, 1943 was most unkind a people can do over another people. Since that date until 1945, the Japanese soldiers in Banga were very cruel. However, Banga for the last three years has been celebrating “Pag abi abi” on October 23 instead of Juez de Kotsilyo. This is positive. It conveys Aklanon’s culture of being hospitable.

The lobby of a hotel in Madrid, Spain where the award ceremony of the painting “Spolarium” done by Juan Luna is now a storage room. The Spaniards did not accept that their artists can be defeated by an artists from its Colony.

In Barcelona, Spain where Jose Rizal studied, the apartment where he stayed has no marker. The Tibidabo where Rizal was jailed for 24 hours after his arrest has no marker. It was demolished in 1994 where Olympic stadium was built.

Paeapak to Pahilot

Change is overdue. Let us change from negative to positive. That pana-ad “Paeapak” is very humiliating. And can be changed to “Pahilot”. This will develop self respect, self esteem, and self confidence among Aklanons. 

Tourism Boom

“There is no more powerful engine driving an organization toward excellence and long range success than an attractive, worthwhile, achievable vision for the future widely shared.” I like the quotation for it means public officials and the people for public office meant to serve and serve it honestly, justly, and fairly.

Gov. Joeben T. Miraflores believes that this quotation holds true for all successful organizations and governments. He is most certain that it is also true in his governance, a participatory, united and shared leadership has done wonders for Aklan. He revealed this in his State of the Province Address delivered on February 4, 2015.

According to Miraflores, “Aklan truly has levelled up” with the highest contribution of locally sourced income among the 81 provinces of the Philippines in the amount of Php 491.75 million to the regular income of Php 1.09 billion.”

With this huge amount of money Aklan province is earning, I hope this will filter down to all Aklanons. However, a great bulk of these earnings comes from the tourism program. And those who enjoy the tourists’ money are the transport, restaurant, and hotel industries owners and operators.

While Aklan boost of its twin Agriculture and Tourism program, farmers have minute participation in the Aklan provincial tourism industry.

The 1.4 million visitors who visited Aklan in 2013, ate seven (7) percent fruits produced in Aklan, the 93 percent were imported. They ate four (4) percent vegetables produced in Aklan, 96 percent were imported. While 11 towns of the 17 municipalities are located in the coastal areas, the tourists ate 37 percent only of the fish produced in Aklan, the 63 percent were imported.

May more assistance be given to the agriculture industry in the coming years to allow greater participation of farmers to the tourists industry. /MP