By Ephraim Aguilar
INQUIRER.net
MASBATE CITY--Talk about a dramatic entrance.
A helicopter descended from the heavens, stirring up dust, while a political jingle played at full blast. Senator Manuel Villar, who came dressed as a cowboy, alighted from the chopper and was brought to the grandstand by a mob of aides and supporters.
This happened in the middle of the opening ceremonies of the annual Rodeo Masbateño festival here on Wednesday, disrupting a speech by a top local tourism official.
Five horses, spooked by the chopper’s landing, dashed around the stadium like mad creatures and ran over a boy who was injured and rushed to the hospital.
Dr. Adolfo Almanzor, provincial health officer, said the boy arrived at the hospital semiconscious and was found to have suffered abrasions on his face as well as cerebral contusions.
Meanwhile, the star-struck masses howled as cowboy Villar paced closer and started shaking everyone’s hand.
Villar, who is running for president in 2010, later delivered a speech.
Respect culture of place
For most people, the senator’s entrance was too grand to ignore.
But for education supervisor Erusita Rosero, cultural coordinator of the Department of Education in Masbate City, Villar’s behavior was not proper.
“No one should disrupt an activity like that. Visitors should properly respect the culture of a place,” Rosero said.
“Since he (Villar) was invited by politicians, there could also be something political behind his visit,” she added.
So sorry
Rosero said all guests were welcome to Masbate. She added there was nothing wrong with inviting Villar but his visit should not be used as an opportunity to campaign.
Throughout the opening rites, Villar was repeatedly referred to by emcees and other politicians as the “next president of the Republic of the Philippines.”
Asked for comment, Villar said he had no intention of disrupting the event and apologized to those who felt offended.
“From what I know, there were some [safety] issues but the pilot was able to land without too much disruption. Nevertheless, if some people were inconvenienced, I apologize. The very warm reception of the crowd on that occasion encourages me to return to Masbate soonest,” he said.
Not intentional
Masbate Governor Elisa Kho, who was with Villar during his late entrance, said the circumstances were not within the senator’s control.
She said they already apologized to Maria Ong-Ravanilla, regional director of the Department of Tourism, for unintentionally disrupting her speech.
“I think it was not being disrespectful,” Kho said in a phone interview.
She added that the 2010 elections were not that far off and politicians tend to grab every opportunity to introduce themselves to the public.
“It cannot be avoided,” Kho said.
She also said that Villar pledged support for the annual rodeo festival and to Masbate province once he was elected president.
Why not the airport?
Local trader Carmelito Fajara, 37, said there were varied reactions from Masbate residents. Some were offended, while others couldn’t care less.
“But since the city has an airport, I think it would have been wiser if [Villar] had landed there so he could quietly enter the stadium,” Fajara said.
“It’s only now, after many years, that I have witnessed such a scene during the rodeo festival!” he added.
“Dili pa ngani siya nagiging presidente (He is not even president yet),” was another comment from a local resident.
Showing posts with label guyito. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guyito. Show all posts
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Sunday, March 02, 2008
‘I hate you, Mina’text jokes circulate
26 November 2007
By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY—I hate you, Mina.
This was part of a popular text joke that circulated among Al-
bay residents yesterday after Typhoon “Mina” suddenly changed its course.
The full text joke was: “I hate you, Mina! Ano ba talaga? Saan ka ba talaga? MINA-luya, MINA-kusog, MINA-uran, MINA-paros! Ano daw kun MINA-layas ka na sana! (Where are you really, Mina? You slow down, you gain strength, you bring rains, you bring winds. What if you just go away!)”
“Mina” is a Bicol prefix added to a verb to denote an action in the present tense.
Mina was also fondly nicknamed “Ara Mina” by some residents.
When Albay folk sent text messages to radio shows to ask about the latest weather update, they would say, “Kumusta na si Mina (How is Mina)?” referring to the typhoon as if it were a person.
Coping mechanism
Dolly Laguilles, sociology professor in Bicol University here, said the text jokes were the people’s way of coping with the stress caused by preparations to avoid the typhoon’s wrath.
“You see the humor of the Filipino? It’s a good coping mechanism as long as it maintains respect toward other people,” Laguilles said.
She, however, lashed out at the comment made by a male radio announcer, who on Saturday morning compared Mina’s erratic behavior to that of a woman.
“He was saying it was typical for Typhoon Mina, just like a woman, to change her mind,” Laguilles said.
Sexual innuendo
She added that jokes were circulating through text messages that Mina could not move “dahil napapatungan pa siya ni Lando (because Lando was on top of her).”
Lando hit the Visayas before Mina did.
“It was a sexual innuendo. Women are always subjected to [this] in macho conversations,” Laguilles, a feminist, told the Inquirer in a mobile phone interview.
Although male names were now being used to name typhoons, she said, gender bias still prevailed as reflected in the sexist comments and jokes.
She added there was a need to educate people to be more gender-sensitive.
Human traits
Laguilles said it could be the “baransagan” (name-calling) culture that made it easy to associate typhoons with people.
“No mother would want to name her children Reming or Sisang,” she said.
She noted that people easily associated Typhoon Mina with Ara Mina, a popular celebrity.
But more than that, Laguilles said, typhoons were also believed to have a quality of “spontaneity” just like human beings.
She said typhoons could be associated with emotions of people who could go into a frenzy or who could get angry.
Not all that bad
Laguilles said a Bicol historian once wrote that the typhoons that frequented the Bicol peninsula were not all that bad.
She said the historian, whose name she could not recall, wrote something like this: “The Bicol region was abundantly blessed with natural wonders, God had to invent typhoons to balance everything.”
By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY—I hate you, Mina.
This was part of a popular text joke that circulated among Al-
bay residents yesterday after Typhoon “Mina” suddenly changed its course.
The full text joke was: “I hate you, Mina! Ano ba talaga? Saan ka ba talaga? MINA-luya, MINA-kusog, MINA-uran, MINA-paros! Ano daw kun MINA-layas ka na sana! (Where are you really, Mina? You slow down, you gain strength, you bring rains, you bring winds. What if you just go away!)”
“Mina” is a Bicol prefix added to a verb to denote an action in the present tense.
Mina was also fondly nicknamed “Ara Mina” by some residents.
When Albay folk sent text messages to radio shows to ask about the latest weather update, they would say, “Kumusta na si Mina (How is Mina)?” referring to the typhoon as if it were a person.
Coping mechanism
Dolly Laguilles, sociology professor in Bicol University here, said the text jokes were the people’s way of coping with the stress caused by preparations to avoid the typhoon’s wrath.
“You see the humor of the Filipino? It’s a good coping mechanism as long as it maintains respect toward other people,” Laguilles said.
She, however, lashed out at the comment made by a male radio announcer, who on Saturday morning compared Mina’s erratic behavior to that of a woman.
“He was saying it was typical for Typhoon Mina, just like a woman, to change her mind,” Laguilles said.
Sexual innuendo
She added that jokes were circulating through text messages that Mina could not move “dahil napapatungan pa siya ni Lando (because Lando was on top of her).”
Lando hit the Visayas before Mina did.
“It was a sexual innuendo. Women are always subjected to [this] in macho conversations,” Laguilles, a feminist, told the Inquirer in a mobile phone interview.
Although male names were now being used to name typhoons, she said, gender bias still prevailed as reflected in the sexist comments and jokes.
She added there was a need to educate people to be more gender-sensitive.
Human traits
Laguilles said it could be the “baransagan” (name-calling) culture that made it easy to associate typhoons with people.
“No mother would want to name her children Reming or Sisang,” she said.
She noted that people easily associated Typhoon Mina with Ara Mina, a popular celebrity.
But more than that, Laguilles said, typhoons were also believed to have a quality of “spontaneity” just like human beings.
She said typhoons could be associated with emotions of people who could go into a frenzy or who could get angry.
Not all that bad
Laguilles said a Bicol historian once wrote that the typhoons that frequented the Bicol peninsula were not all that bad.
She said the historian, whose name she could not recall, wrote something like this: “The Bicol region was abundantly blessed with natural wonders, God had to invent typhoons to balance everything.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)