Asing Biniray?—The Fabicon-Fadrilan dialogue (2)

Let me refresh my readers about the Biniray, the subject of Fabicon-Fadrilan dialogue a year ago, which I retrieved, with the help of the former, from the archives.

The main reason I am writing about the topic is to provide Asi Banto-anons, Sibalenhons, Simaranhons, Odionganons, and Calatravanhons—and whoever is interested—a historical perspective of this enduring religious traditions which, I believe, is the thread that holds the Asi tribe together culturally and spiritually.

To understand the Biniray is to understand the Bantoanon psyche; to participate in it is to be interested in the evolution of the Bantoanons’ religious development.

As Fabicon wrote: “Maagnum ni hambilingon ka Biniray, lalo-ey kung ka mga batasan ag tradisyong pang kultural o pang sosyedad ay kaibhanan.”

It is in this context that we continue peering into the dialogue.

Asing biniray para kang San Nicolas?

Fadrilan: Inggwa pa et ibang dahilan. Si San Nicolas ay santong patron et mga marino (mariners). Sa Banton, inggwa et dating lanson nak ka ngayan ay San Nicolas. Ka tag-iya it kali ay taga-Soyawan sa Brgy. Banice. Ka ngayan et osang kompanya et mga lanson biyaheng Palawan et mga Fabula ay San Nicolas Lines. In Old Manila, San Nicolas was also a popular patron saint of many Chinese in the San Nicolas district of Binondo. An anecdote has it that through the intercession of San Nicolas, a Chinese child was saved from being devoured by a crocodile in the Pasig River. The Chinese used to have a fluvial parade (Biniray?) in honor of San Nicolas from Sta. Ana to Binondo (Del Pan) in the Pasig River.

There are San Nicolas patronal feast celebrations in about 40 town parishes, but four dioceses in the Philippines do not have the fluvial parade, or Biniray, event in their celebrations.

Fabicon: Your comments invite other trivia:St. Nicholas had performed significant miracles as well. The Senyor, stories had it, saved nine passengers in a sinking ship by holding on to them a lily.

In another occasion, he saved the burning castle of the Duke of Venice by throwing a piece of his famous blessed bread!Banton has its share of the San Nicholas story as well.

During the heydey of the galleon trade, the locals had contacts with the shipbuilders in Marinduque, thus, loan Spanish words in the Asi vocabulary exist to the present day: camarote, pugon, aribada, gromete, etc.

It was very possible that some Romblomanons, in general, and Bantoanons, in particular, as Bisayans, already learned the "language of the purling waves" in Cornelio Faigao's award winning poem, "The Brown Child").

The Bisayans' navigation skills were manna to the Spanish colonizers. Spanish chroniclers wrote of galleon ships manned by Bisayan crew members.It is significant to note that other than lanson and batil, the Bantoanons' alternative vessel for barter and trade was the pasahi/pasahe—a much-improved version of the biray.

It was very common during Biniray when a lanson or a batil were in drydock in Nasunogan. The pasahi took over as Senyor San Nicholas' "flagship". Devotees were all cramped in the upper deck as they sang and prayed in Hiligaynon!

Fadrilan: Unang nagrana sa isip et mga Biniray leaders kaling plano et kag guing totokor pa yang kag Silver Biniray, tuig 2007.

Inggua et pilang bangor, kung asing mahirap mahinabo kali sa nakraan: 1) Rakong gastos (plete, pagkaon, bayon) para sa mga deboto ni San Nicolas; 2) Mahabang oras (adlaw) nak sinra ay mapalta sa trabaho; 3) Marisgo ka biyahe sa ragat—ka buyan nak Septiyembre ay mabagyo, mauyan; ag 4) Waya et mas makusog nak dahilan. Inggua ra et Biniray (original) sa Banton.

Maramong Bantoanon nak nakaistar ngasing sa ibang lugar (liwit-liwit) ay nagpapauli sa Banton, banwang tinubuan, para sa pagrom-rom sa mga religious traditions kung Mahay nak Adlaw. Sa Metro Manila ag ibang lugar sa Luzon, ka imahe ni San Nicolas ay nag roro-aw sa mga bayay et debotong Bantoanon tuna et kag tuig 1999.

Ka naging mahadag nak ideya ngasing ay dapat pag-usahon ka selebrasyon et tanang Biniray events para kang San Nicolas. Ka main event ay dapat mahinabo sa "bayay" et ka Makaako ag ka ida serbidor nak si San Nicolas sa Banton. Ka mga ibang selebrasyon sa Romblon capital town, Odiongan, Metro Manila, ag Texas (USA) ay mga "supporting events".

Ngasing nak tuig 2008, ka tema et pista sa Banton ag Metro Manila ay a osa: "Nurturing Tradition, Living the Faith". Tan-a sa masunor nak mga tuig,kaling pagkakausa ay mahinabo. Osang Makaako. Osang Pagsalig. Osang San Nicolas. Osang Biniray.

Fabicon wrote that pre- and post-World War II Biniray activities enlivened the September Biniray week attributed to the active participation of the local government.

Fabicon: Perhaps, it is worthy of mention three Bantoanons—among the many in Banton's local history—ex-municipal mayors Silvestre Festin, Dionisio Fetalvero and teniente del barrio of Sibay, Luis Fabicon.

The three in the early 30s were known as "Manila boys", since they spent perhaps a couple or more of their post-teenage lives in Manila doing odd jobs before returning and living in Banton permanently.

Silvestre and Dionisio married fiesta queens, Nang Biday Fabonan and Nang Antang Fadri of "Miss Jones" fame, respectively. Luis married Felipa Festin-Faigao, the only daughter of Rufo Faigao, Banton's first elected municpal president.

The three men and their wives were very active in the promotion of Biniray in Banton, leading and organizing the communal pakaon, sadaw, comedia, koronasyon, novenas, banda performances, which were never absent as Biniray highlights.Without bias, Luis and Felipa had other things to do in Sibay. The couple’s first-born, Nicolas, born on September 10, died an infant's death, but they moved on.

The couple eked out a living, before they went to post-war teaching, by putting up a profitable sari-sari store in Sibay, one of the earliest Spanish posts in the island. Luis engaged in small business barter plying the neighboring islands in his pasahe, named, if i am not mistaken, San Nicolas. San Nicolas's crew saw two hardworking young men, Jose Faminial Sr. and Eugenio Fonte Sr.

Manong Joe, who is now retired in Toronto, Canada brings in him the "knowledge of the purling waves." Ask him about wind directions and he will oblige at will. The late Manong Gene, became a district supervisor in Romblon's public educational system.

Rinzi, it seems to me that prior to Suyawan and Banice, Sibay—with the San Nicolas pasahi and the sari-sair store as business models—gave birth to the concept of a corporation when the lanson Pinagaralan was launched under the leadership of ex-mayor Macario Festin. Pinagaralan also participated as flagship in the Biniray.

What am I writing about? It is, unfortunately, only a few of the many stories about all of us—our culture and history as an Asi community.

There are much more. Senyor San Nicolas is one of our major players in the search of our past and our faith in the pre- and post-Spnish Makaako The Biniray in manila cements what we have gone through regardless of our religious beliefs, our partisanhips, and kinships.

Lastly, Fabicon wrote: “Ka Biniray ag kulturang kayatay nak kung baga ay nakaluyloy sa ato mga paino-ino ay usang katawuhan it Asing kalag.

Asing Biniray?—The Fabicon-Fadrilan dialogue (1)

I should have written about this a long time ago—Ismael Fabicon’s and Rinzi Fadrilan’s dialogue on Biniray which took place, of all places, in the navigable highway of the Internet.

Biniray is ancient, the Internet is recent. The former is a religious tradition, while the latter is a communications technology innovation.

In this context and in many ways, the dialogue was a convergence and one can notice the similarities between the actors and the parallelism of the object of their exchange.

Both Fabicon and Fadrilan are Asi, from Banton. Fabicon lives in the United States, Fadrilan in the Philippines. Both are writers and consumed with undying love for the Asi culture and identity.

Biniray, a potent brew of superstition and religious faith, has reached its apogee in the eastern hemisphere, but its symbol—the Cross, which was the twin of the Sword—the weapon of monarchial Spain when it was rampaging to pursue its dreams of empire, is western.

Thus, in a sense, the dialogue was a case of the East meeting the West. And whether you are a devout believer or an agnostic, you cannot escape the significance of the long-distance dialogue, much less the life-long obsession about Biniray in a digital age characterized by many Catholics now going to a virtual confessional rather than visiting a real church.

Readers who can read and understand our language—the dialogue was in Asi—can surely plumb the depths of Fabicon’s passion about the Bisayans’ religiosity demonstrated by the Biniray. In the same breath, they will also appreciate Fadrilan’s knowledgeable, but detached, narrative of the genesis of some words which has come to be part of the Asi lexicon.

The dialogue started with Fabicon asking the question, “Asing Biniray?” after he had seen some photos of the 2008 Biniray in Tanza, Cavite.

By introduction, the Banton Biniray is a religious feast, held in September of every year in honor of the island’s patron saint—St. Nicholas de Tolentino.

A decade ago, Bantoanons who cannot come home to Banton in September of every year decided to hold a tamer version of the Biniray in Luzon. Corregidor in Bataan, according to Fadrilan, was the situ of the Biniray for the first few years. Then, it was transferred to Tanza in Cavite. Bantoanons in many places in Luzon came to Tanza to join the celebration, the number increasing every year and the activities associated with the celebration, improving and—what can one say?—veering farther and farther away from the essence of Biniray.

I said this aware that some Bantoanons will contradict me. I can assure them, however, that this observation is not meant to disparage the Biniray, but only to point out that like most religious festivals anywhere else in the Philippines, the Biniray has been diluted by the amenities of modernity—sports, raffle, songs, dances, and food and drink parties—so much so that its religious aspect is dimmed, lost, among the younger generation of Bantoanons who may not have a sense of the Biniray’s rich and colorful history.

This is so because the Biniray in Luzon, because it is held outside the original site—in Banton—has lost the quality of authenticity of place. “Kawang” is how I express this quality in Asi. St. Nicholas de Tolentino, if he were alive, would have known that the fluvial parade held in his honor is in alien water, sea, or ocean. But would he care? Would he care when the Biniray in Luzon, though tamer, imbues the Bantoanon religious with the same electric solemnity and devotion as the original Banton Biniray?

It is in this context that I place the Fabicon-Fadrilan exchange. Here is the dialogue, with my sparse parenthetical comments.

Ish Fabicon: “Ak nagtarok rutong mga ging paranang mga retrato ni Philip. Kag ragipon sa tema nak pagpahupot, pagparuyot, pagpalangga,, pagya-um, ag pagsalig sa "tradisyong pang relihiyon" sa mga deboto ni Sr. San Nikolas sa Tanza, Cavite, kung silinggon, ay usa ra gihapong pag-adungkar it ato mga naghihingayo-ey ag nasasambit yangey nak aspetong pang kultural.

Maaring kaling bulay-bulayon ay nakahayhay nak mga tradisyong pangrelihiyon, lalo-ey sa mg deboto, nak kung baga’y matikasog ka inra pag-ampo sa Makaako ag pagkibir sa inra kinabuhing espiritwal.Asing Biniray? Bag-o mag-abot kag mga Kastila, kag mga Bisaya, sa inra sariling rila it kinabuhi, ay ging pasam-ing ka mga kinahangyang pang adlaw-adlaw sa baroto, ramyog, ag sasakyang mas rako, o Biray.

Kinang Biray nak de-katig gihapon ay imaw ninra't panglaban sa makusog nak bayor it habagat ag amihan para magbayduhan (barter—NFF) sa iba't ibang isla it mga utanon, tangkon, isra, banig, baro ag iba pang-komersyal nak hiwaton.

Masisiling gihapon nak raha sa baroto, ramyog ag biray gi buskar ka pahilas, patikyar, pataktak it subok, konsepto it pangupong, sanrokan, binuligan, pag-ampo, ragipon, haklahan, sumsuman, ru-aw, pakibat—ag iba pang tradisyong indi-ey nato masambit.”

(I will add to this enumeration of Asi traditions the katipon and ayadon—still being practiced, but rarely, now in Sibale—NFF).

Ish Fabicon: “Kag mga prayleng Rekoletos ay ayam kina. Inra ging pabad-an kinang mga katutubong hiwas agor inot-inot ag mahumok ka inra pagtuy-og it Krisityanismo. Sa karurugayon, nagyuyutaw pa gihapon kinang mga tradisyon nak kina. Ka Biniray ay pangtubi/pangragat. Ka istorya ay nagbusri sa Cebu it kag napasimayatan it mga sundalo ni Legazpi katong muslag nak santos (icon) ni Santo Nino. Buko matilong pagbanrog ka nahinabo ruto sa Cebu. Kag nasaduran ni Legazpi nak kato yaking santos nak Santo Nino ay naging "Ginoong Uyan" (Rain God) it mga Cebuano, ging butang nida sa altar it paghigugma ag katong mga natipon nak mga estoryang pag-ampo ay napalapnag sa kaislahan it bug-os nak Bisaya.

Maaring kung buko uyanon (kuaresma) ag kada Mayo sa Cebu, nahalar sinra it mga palma nak buyak agor ka Santo Nino ay taw-an sinra it rugos nak uyan agor masasabligan ka inra mga katunlan ag paninanom.Ayam nato nak waya gi ruyog si Legazpi sa Cebu dahil nak gusto pa ninrang sohuton kag iba pang isla it Pilipinas.

Kag Santo Nino ay napagka-usahan nak dar-on ruto sa Maynila. Pitong beses nak ging sakay kag Santo Nino sa barko papagto, pero pitong beses ra gihapon nak nakabalik kag Santo Nino sa Cebu.

Rakong katingaya it mga Cebuano—aber pa kuno inapuros sa pitong kahon nak bay-utan ka karagko, imaw gihapon nak sa masunor nak adlaw, si Santo Nino ay nayutaw sa Cebu! Inggwa pa ngani it usang beses kuno nak kung hagto'y si Santo Nino sa simbahan it San Agustin sa Manila, inutoy it mga Prayle kag napaki ni Santo Nino agor indi makabaktas sa rayan—maparagat o mapaduta—pa Cebu!Sa karurugayon, kag metologo (myth) it Santo Nino it Cebu, ay nagbayahak ag nagyapita sa buha it mga Bisaya—mga estoryang ging hinghing ninra ag pinaruyot sa kapwa Bisaya—riin mang liwit-liwit; sa inra pagga-or, liyo-liyo, ag bugsay it baroto, ramyog, ag biray.

Kada ngani, sa islang Romblon, inggwa gihapon it Biniray, yabot yang ka estorya, ugaling pareho yang ka yaguntar it hinabo. Sa mga Romblomanon, kag Santo Nino kuno it kato ay apaliwason sa simbahan ag itap-ok sa ibang lugar. Pitong beses ka biyahe it galyon, pitong beses ka subasko, pitong beses rang inabalik si Santo Nino rutong ida nahihimtangan sa yumang simbahan it Romblon!

Sa pueblo it Banton, pitong beses nak dar-on si Senyor San Nicolas sa pueblo it Mainit, pitong beses ka subasko, pitong beses nak nakabalik si Senyor sa yumang simbahan it Poblacion!"
(To be continued.)

Beltran's 'sacristans'

Romblon vice governor Alice Fetalvero must be very, very frustrated.

As presiding officer of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, or SP, I am sure she is forced by circumstance to hobnob in council sessions with a bunch of elected provincial lawmakers who have different personal backgrounds, different motivations, and different levels of abilities.

As a co-equal branch of the provincial executive, the law designed the SP in such a way that it must be peopled by representatives OF the masses, BY the masses, and FOR the masses, so much so that the SP every three years, again as deemed by law, must welcome a group of people with varied persuasions elected by their constituents.

Romblon’s SP is no different from Congress. It is designed to formulate laws, and to serve as foil to an overbearing and abusive provincial executive. By law, the SP must do its work through collective action and debate, unlike the governor who is alone, and whose main job is to execute, or implement, the laws and ordinances issued from the chambers of the SP.

It is against this background that we examine the Romblon Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

Alice Fetalvero knows her work, and it is this knowledge that is one of the sources of her frustration. As former mayor, she had dealt with a Sangguniang Bayan in Calatrava and she knows that without the imprimatur of the municipal councilors, she cannot move an inch. In her case as SP presiding officer, she has to deal with a pliant—because it is spineless—Sanggunian. This is why she is frustrated.

Check and balance. That’s how the local legislative bodies were designed. That’s what the SP is all about. If only this design by the law is followed, the province, or indeed, the country, should by now speeding through the superhighway of progress.

Alas, the SP, as presently constituted, has abandoned for all intents and purposes its basic responsibility as a check-and-balance mechanism of governance. It is an “Amen” and “Hallelujah” Sanggunian, a Sanggunian that doesn’t “sangguni” (or consult), but a Sanggunian that merely goes along with the wishes, whims, and caprices of the provincial governor.

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan is no more than a rubberstamp Sanggunian. It has become a tool by the governor to lend a face of legitimacy, or regularity, to all things illegitimate, and irregular, that he has done for the last two years.

This is not merely an observation of a citizen. This is a view of someone who, in 2007, lent a few words of advice to some of the members who now sit cozily on their chairs in the provincial legislative.

Shortly before the start of the election campaign in 2007, Rep. Budoy Madrona invited me to give a pep talk to his SP candidates. Budoy then was up to a big challenge: unseating an incumbent administration led by Dr. Lolong Firmalo, and he made sure that his candidates reflected his dream of taking back the reigns of power from the neophyte legislator-doctor who abruptly ended his dream in 2004.

I remember the following faces who listened to that briefing: Nelson Lim, George Ramos, Gil Ll. Moreno, and Geminiano Galicia. Governor candidate Jojo Beltran was there, but he arrived very late, a reflection of his bad personal habits. He sat at the back, and pretended to know the subject at hand. I knew his mind was somewhere else.

In that only encounter I had with the SPs-to-be, I outlined the economic situation of Romblon and the message that they should bring to the people during the campaign. I said that as members-to-be of the SP, they carry a big burden on their shoulders to change for the better the socio-economic condition of the Romblomanons. I said provincial unity and hard work is the key that would unlock the province’s potential. They should work for that, I told them.

Either the candidates were not listening, or they were dense, or they had this prejudice against the wisdom of islanders, that they soon forget the encounter. Rep. Madrona seemed not to care, too, for he didn’t forcefully drive the message. The next day, they all went back to Romblon because it was the start of the campaign.

I recall this episode because as we see today, the SP is not functioning as it should. By sheer number, it affirms the governor and rams through our throats whatever it is that Beltran wishes to ram.

Sure, there are opposition members in the SP—Manuel Madrid, Benjamin Irao, and of course, Alice Fetalvero, but their collective force is no match to the overwhelming number of Beltran’s henchmen—Lim, Ramos, Moreno, Dorado, and Galicia. How about Pat Manalon? Is he or isn’t he?

There, too, are the ex-officio members Gerry Tansiongco, the representative of the barangay captains, Felix Ylagan, the representative of the municipal councilors, and Mark Philip Tandog, the youth representative. Their presence not only makes the SP a humungous crowd. They make sure that any question regarding Beltran’s proposals would be met—with defeat. What Beltran desires, the SP provides.

I have not attended any session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, so I cannot attest to the quality of the debates, if there are debates at all, that transpire in the provincial legislative body. But I can attest to one thing: none of the members of the SP, except Alice Fetalvero, has ever corresponded with this writer on any issue that I have raised concerning Romblon. She calls to clarify issues that I write. Irao and Madrid, too.

As to the rest, they take it as business as usual. And their business? Peddling silence, deafening silence. They have been mute and deaf on issues that matter to the people.

I can also attest that on occasions I have read, or have learned, that the SP has acted or moved, it was to act or to move AGAINST the people of Romblon. I can as well attest that nothing thus far that has emanated from the SP, in terms of laws or ordinances, has changed the life quality index of the Romblomanons. I know, I have been tracking this index regularly. Has the SP, for example, considered legislating opportunities for emergency employment immediately after the global financial crisis hit Philippine shores? SP Irao, please answer this question.

And so, it came to pass that we are now nearing a decision point whether or not to send these members of the SP back to their comfy chairs in the capitol, or to banish them to oblivion. I am speaking of the May 2010 elections, when I am sure these elected clowns in the provincial Sanggunian, masquerading as servants of the people, will again conduct a visitation and beg us for our votes. Are we to re-elect deodorants to the governor or elect SPs with balls and imagination?

The choice is clear: Junk Beltran’s “sacristans”.

A bold prediction: Lolong by a mile over Beltran

I have not seen Dr. Lolong Firmalo as serious as he was last Sunday.

Over Californian, Spanish, Italian and Australian wine, sinigang na kanduli, chicken adobo and Boer goat meat courtesy of Dr. Tato Sison in his resort in Pililla, Rizal, Dr. Firmalo and his wife Leonie, their daughter Trina, retired judge Cesar Solis, Gilbert Miniano, former San Fernando mayor Dindo Rios and his wife Ruby, former Romblon municipal councilor now Sun columnist Lyndon Molino, and myself talked about Romblon politics, a topic that sends people to convulse because it is the most potent brew ever invented by man.

Pililla seemed an out-of-town hideaway to discuss politics, but it is ideal. For one, Dr. Tato’s resort commands a spectacular view of the eastern part of Laguna Lake and the mountains of the Sierra Madre. For another, it is safe from eavesdroppers who might leak things said at the meeting, although, I said to the group that I will write about it for the benefit of discussion.

A gracious host, Dr. Sison quipped that he wouldn’t mind slaughtering more Boer goats—he has plenty—to ensure the opposition in Romblon, led, of course, by Dr. Firmalo, unseats Rep. Budoy Madrona and company in the May 2010 election.

This quip sent the group to a frenzied discussion.

The essence of the meeting was the one tough question that many have been asking: Who, in the opposition, will fight Budoy Madrona in 2010?

Romblon, it seems, has run out of politicians because no one, at least as the discussion went, wants to stand in Budoy’s way to a second term in the House of Representatives.

But before this question was dissected, the discussion revolved around Gov. Jojo Beltran. Beltran is a goner if Lolong decides to fight him as governor, many in the group agreed. The reason is obvious. The young Beltran, as observers opine, is far—very far—from the mold of his late father.

Using as a campaign motto what was supposed to be the last wish of Natalio Beltran Sr.—“Anak, huwag mong pababayaan ang Romblon.”—Jojo cheated the hearts of Romblomanons in 2007 straight to the capitol by repeatedly engaging in this tear-jerker of a huling habilin.

And true enough, waya gi pabad-i ni Jojo ka Romblon. He ransacked it. Way to go, Gov. Jojo.

So with this state of things now, Dr. Firmalo MUST fight Jojo Beltran, who embodies the pervasive personality of a traditional politician—lazy, unimaginative, and corrupt—and therefore, represents more harm and devastation to Romblon than any of the previous governors combined.

Well, there is an exemption to this view and he is Budoy Madrona who, when he was governor, mortgaged Romblon to the Land Bank of the Philippines, reason why we are drowning in debt.

The group is of the view that if Lolong fights Beltran, Beltran would not know what hits him.
This, Trina Firmalo said, is also the consensus of Lolong’s municipal leaders, who believe that Firmalo versus Beltran will be a no-contest. Lolong will trounce Beltran by a mile. “Milya-milya gid ang layo”, Lyndon remorselessly quipped.

Lyndon also said that if Firmalo decides to run for governor, Budoy, who is a take-all-or-nothing political animal, will be deathly worried. He doesn’t like the idea of the capitol occupied by an oppositionist, more so by his mortal political nemesis, Lolong, for fear that all the skeletons in the closet, the dirt of misgovernance past, will come tumbling down at his very doorstep if Lolong wins as governor.

A double whammy? Lolong beating Jojo means beating Budoy, too? So, what happens to Agriculture undersecretary Bernie Fondevilla?

Ah, Bernie, who is drooling over the prospect of becoming the next Romblon congressman and who, by the way, figures in the political equation only because he doled-out goodies in 2007, is nearing political extinction if he doesn’t act fast.

He has one week, to be exact. You see, Bernie is playing games, saying one day he will run, and then hiding the next. Is he afraid to spend his money or afraid of Budoy? Maybe or may be not, but the standard reply coming from Fondevilla, I was told, was that he is waiting for the green light from Malacanang. Come on, Bernie, you know that’s crap. Who, in heaven’s sake, would believe that Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, your patron, regards Romblon with such importance that she determines your fate, your political career, and that she will make the decision for you?

This is the problem with Bernie and other Romblon traditional politicians. Because of lack of clear ideas and principles, they can’t decide, deluding themselves that the presence of a national patron and the availability of truckloads of money will get Romblon out of the rut. Will Arroyo’s raising Bernie’s hands in May 2010 solve our joblessness, poverty, and the other problems inherited and multiplied by Madrona and Beltran? Bernie, I’ll give you A-plus if you answer that question correctly.

Judge Solis was right. He said that in national politics, Romblon, a backwater province led by backwater politicians, has no leverage that it is well nigh impossible that Fondevilla, who is Agriculture secretary Yap’s lapdog and barker, would be asked or not asked by the President to run or not to run.

I am of the opinion that Fondevilla is playing coy about his plans because he, too, has become a traditional pol. He is also playing decoy to the opposition, delaying his decision using Malacanang as pretext to derail Lolong’s plans and moves. Is he sincere as an oppositionist? I doubt, but I believe Trina when he said that Bernie promised to help the opposition even if he doesn’t run.

I now say, Bernie don’t run. Just help Lolong and company. Anyway, you have a bright career ahead of you even if your bosses, Yap and Arroyo, would be hauled off to jail after the election. But if you run, make sure that Madrona doesn’t steamroll you. He is loaded. Are you?

On the other hand, I don’t doubt Lolong’s sincerity, particularly when he said that in the absence of Fondevilla’s final word, he is moving forward “to save Romblon”.

“Save Romblon”. Well, Romblon, like Private Ryan, is worth saving. It is OUR province, and we must do everything in our power to prevent Romblon from going to the dogs. The question, however, is who will lead the saving? Should it be Bernie? And save it from what? I am not too sure everybody understands whom or where to save Romblon from, and for whom shall we save it. For ourselves, the greater many; or for the traditional politicians, the fewer few?

I also don’t doubt Trina’s sincerity when she asked me later I must have time for Romblon. Trina—who just recently returned from Princeton University where she studied public affairs and international relations and is now doing consultancy work on rural development in Romblon—has the making of a progressive-minded public servant, but that’s for another topic.

In the meantime, I told her I have been devoting time for cultural work in the province, my polite way of saying that I don’t entertain the idea of being in politics again, unless I am shoved, and promised her I’ll invite her to have coffee.

That would be soon, Trina. And please, tell your Dad that if he intends to save Romblon, he should do it properly and quickly.

Asi? The Concert and the coming of age of a language

I didn’t take note of the names and faces of those who came to the Asi? The Concert last Saturday at the Arellano University Gym, but from the number of people who stayed up to the last number, I can say with unabashed pride that it was a success. Lyndon Fadri, the prime mover of the event, can now recover his lost sleep.

Language—the Asi language—was the cause célèbre of the concert. Its aim was not to make tons of money, but to tell the world the Asi also sing and that they sing in their own tongue.

It was kind of daring for the Banton High School Alumni Association (BHSAA), of which Lyndon is also president, to “invade” a city where performance acts of singing artists of all hues and shades and ideologies are dime a dozen and to subject the Asi language to a commercial test. To bring Asi singers unknown outside of Romblon to a city known for either catapulting singers to instant fame or burying them to oblivion is bravery. BHSAA was brave.

Did the concert pass that test? Only time and the BHSAA can tell, but from where I sit—and the place where I am is the salt mine of Asi language and culture promotion—I can say that BHSAA’s daring paid off. Congratulations.

Asi? The Concert was unique in that all the songs performed by the artists were all in Asi the language. In my lifetime, this has not been done. If it has, I have not watched or heard any.

And I have not watched a concert divided into pitong hugna, that’s seven sets for you lovers of things English.

In between Hinigugmang Banwa (Town Beloved); Hanrumanan (Remembrances); Ugar sa Tagipusoon (Heart Wounds); Panaghoy sa Kagabhion (Night Lamentations); Pangpukaw sa Tagipusoon (Heart Stirrings); Pangkibot (One to Jolt); and Kayupugan (To Rock) were songs that captured the essences of the Asi’s existence, way of life, faith, passion, love, aspirations, courage and bravery, beauty, tradition, politics, emotional contradictions and turmoil, and sense of place and identity.

The situ of the concert was foreign to Asi—Manila is a melting pot of numerous regional and international cultures—but the atmosphere was distinctly Asi. That night, one could feel and smell Banton, Simara, Sibale, Calatrava and Odiongan coming together in a big dinner table to partake of the only fare in the menu that unites their soul—the Asi language. The spirit rejoiced to hear for one night the songs that make us as a people. If it was a real dinner, I have had more than my fill. I staggered home drunk from the fountain of Asi songs.

Leah Fietas-Beltran, Sarah Jane Fatallo-Drio and Candy Fegalan sang songs that rocked our cradles--rudan--when we were children. It was a delight to hear again the songs that lulled me to dreamland. Songs of Nathaniel Musico, Julian Faderon and the lyric translations of Claro Formadero, Cleto Fojas and Filmer Fegalan tugged at the heart and transported us back to lost memories of yesteryears.

Today’s generation of Asi, which has already been the product of various cultural influences, showed us why our culture is flexible. This flexibility is reflected by the abilities of Ivan and Al Jandy Fadriquela, Yiene Famaran, and the 1622: Unang Usbor to traverse from the reflective, melodious Asi tunes to the upbeat and modern-day trends of popular music, from Gaha, Kabuyong, Mag-amigo, and Pamusiag to Kuto’t Baylehan, Tiog 1970, Biniray Ray, Malatumbo, and Pailig.

The Asi is not incapable of producing world music. Orimos, Muyat Anay, Turna, Oho, Tubong, and Unang Paghigugma are tunes that soar and whose lyrics are rich in metaphor that one needs to visit the Asi places where these songs developed roots to be able to appreciate their magic. Kabataan, Subatey is pure in its message of social relevance and Ludgie Faigao’s serious rendition of the Lyndon Fadri composition reflects the responsibility of today’s youth that many Asi refuse to bear.

My new singing group from Sibale, the InGsaBat Band, certainly inspired by 1622: Unang Usbor, performed four songs at the concert. The band story deserves another piece.

The sound system glitch that briefly halted the performances was not enough to temper audience enthusiasm over the classic Tamboy Tamboy Agong, which I was told was performed by Joey Ayala and his colleagues, Onie Badiang and Chong Tengasantos in Banton when the group conducted a music clinic there a few weeks ago for 1622: Unang Usbor.

Ayala, Badiang and Tengasantos were at the concert, together with Ms. Nota Magno, who has been mightily helping the Asi Studies Center for Culture and the Arts, 1622: Unang Usbor’s manager.

Unlike commercial sponsors of big, mainstream musical events, the patrons of the Asi? The Concert may not profit financially from their investment in the BHSAA-organized concert.

But it might be comforting for RDL-CLEAR, Greenhorns, Kusog Sibalenhon, Arellano University, Manuel Martinez Scholarship Foundation, Matias-Serena Fadrilan Family, Romblon Vice Governor Alice Fetalvero, La Verne Academy, BHS Classes 84, 87, 88, 2001 and 2009, Nasunogan Youth Organization, Mr. & Mrs. Joemel Ferrancol, Dr. Lolong Firmalo & Family, Mr. & Mrs. Jospeh Fadri & Family, Mr. & Mrs. Darimar Fabellon, Ms. Malie Fonte, and Engr. Adel Ferrer to know that they had planted the seeds of the Asi language outside Romblon in a way that future generation of Filipinos may look back at it as a big effort in showcasing the power of Asi music.

Pagkaykay it primerong gakor: Patugsiling

Kag editoryal sa www.sanrokan.com ni Ish Fabicon:

“Ka pagbusri it RDL (Romblon Discussion List) ag www.sanrokan.com ay nakatunong sa usa nak mga higako namo: palapnagon ka tatlong rila it probinsya—Romblomanon/Ini, Unhan, ag Asi.

“Kung ato kaykayon kinang mga kayatay it mga bulaybulayon ag diskusyonan sa RDL ag Sanrokan, imaw gihapon ka amo pangabay nak kung sarang ka mga pagsuyat reli sa mga rahon it Sanrokan ay sa tatlong rila it probinsya. Ugaling uya ra namo gibabawayi nak ka mga "bloggers' ay magparana it inra tuytuyanon sa Tingayug o English. Ka amo yang ngasing ging hahagar ay patugsiling na kung sarang, yaktan ra it pagsuyat sa Romblomanon/Ini, Unhan ag Asi.

“Kabay pang sabligan kami it inro patugsiling”,
ay mayamig nak tubi nag ging salibo sa maranggang likor it mga nagtutuko sa website nak kali.

Usa ako sa mga napur-ok it ida pangabay.

Marurumroman it mga nagsusunor sa ako blog ag sa iba pang nagtatapyak reli sa sanrokan it tuytuyanon nak ka karam-ang pag-itam-itam reli ay sa English ag Tagalog. Inggwa man it nagsusuyat sa inra sariling rila ay mayagwat pa sa pasi it payay nak bag-huang bag-ong bado ag bag-ong pur-as.

Ka pagtratar it RDL-CLEAR ag www.sanrokan.com sa mga nagbubuyar reli it mga kaisipan, miskan sisi-o, ay pamatuor it demokrasyang pinakamataas—kag ging aayaba nato sa English nak “freedom of expression”.

Ugaling, dahil gani kag pagbuswang it RDL-CLEAR ag www.sanrokan.com ay “nakatunong” sa pagpalapnag it tatlong lengguwahe it probinsiya, nag-aaro ako sa parumrom ni Fabicon. Dapat ra talaga nak ka mga nagyuyu-aw reli sa www.sanrokan.com ay papaagto sa rayan nak ka akahantupan ay magyutaw ka Romblomanon/Ini, Unhan, ag Asi.

Ngasing yang kali nako nabisayaha: Sa rinugay-rugay nako it pagtuko sa www.sanrokan.com, mas maramo ka nagsusuyat sa Asi kumpara sa Romblomanon/Ini ag Unhan. Asi?

Buko dapat magkumpara, ag basi pang buko klaro kaling ako pamatyagon, pero sa ako natutuhob, pay mas maramong Asi ka mukyat ka nayusrok pag-abot sa paglig-on ag pag-alinton it inra kultura kada mas maramo ka nagsusuyat sa Asi.

Mabis-oy kali gi sambiton, pero inggwa gihapon kali it rason.

Sa ako pamutang, kada mas maramong nagsusuyat sa www.sanrokan.com it mga tuytuyanong Asi ay dahil siguro sa “kahadlok”.

Kung irug-on it matugas sa patsihan, sa tatlong tribo it Romblon, ka Asi it ging tatratong kuliyot sa probinsiya. Sa Sibale ay imaw kali it “island psyche” dahil hanggang ngasing, nagriril-at sa isip it mga Sibalenhon kag derogatory nak pag-obserba it mga Romblomanon mainlanders sa mga taga-Sibale: “Sibale lang da!”

Imaw kali, sa ako pag-ibok sa tuyar nak sitwasyon, ka gakor it “kahadlok”.

We Asi write in Asi much more often than the Unhan and the Romblomanon Ini do in their own languages because of this “fear”—founded or unfounded—that if we don’t, our culture—language and all—will be lost forever.

The Asi has an acute sense of this terrible possibility. We write in Asi as much as we can to ensure that our language and cultural identity survive. We fear to lose, and the fear of losing something is the most potent motivation to be courageous in preventing such loss.

The Unhan and the Romblomanon Ini, I am afraid, have no such fear. They are secured in their belief that their number ensures the survival of their languages and way of life. This misplaced belief is cultivated and fertilized by the mainland Romblon politicians who know nothing about culture.

The power to assert our own identity rises from this fear. Thus, if the Asi tribe is much more assertive of their culture and language than the Romblomanon Ini and the Unhan, this is not without reason.

Inggwa it politikang elemento sa tuyar nak nahahanabo, miskan klaro sa istorya it probinsiya nak mga Asi ka pinakamatikasog nak nag nagtuy-og sa progresong pampulitika it Romblon. Fabella, Festin ag Firmalo ka mga nagyuyutaw nak ngayan pag-abot sa tuyar nak pamimisaya.

In this comes the “geographical factor”, which is evident in the allocation of economic resources over which the mainland Romblon politicians often have the final say. I will not pussy-foot. When it comes to political and economic division of resources and benefits, the Asi islands of Sibale, Banton and Simara receive the crumbs because of our geographical distance, which is however, not without a solution. Alas, we are always last in the priorities.

Waya ako gi susungon o gi yayabi sa tuyar nak sitwasyon, pero inggwa it mas marayom nak gakor ka tuyar nak pagtrato sa Asi.

I now begin to suspect a feeling of insecurity in our politicians over their inability to command supreme loyalty from the Asi. Fiercely independent and pragmatic, we Asi do not just bow to convention and the traditional importuning of our corrupt leaders.

We show this independence by writing in our own language.

When Awe Eranes and Tony Macalisang of the Romblon Sun said that the newspaper will not sell when Fabicon suggested he will write a column in Asi, the two, being non-Asi, were only following the dictates of economic reality drawn, established, and perpetuated by the mainland Romblon politicians who profit from the Romblomanons being afflicted with a “siege mentality”, meaning, they entertained the fear no one will read Fabicon, and that if he is read, they will revolt. Nothing is more fearsome than a people learning the ways of their oppressors.

Of course, Eranes’s and Macalisang’s fear is patently false and without basis. The www.sanrokan.com is proof positive that there is a horde of readers in the local languages.

Makaka-testigo ako raha. Sa ako pagsuyat, nagpapayadag ako sa ruhang suba it lengguwahe, English ag Asi. Nagsusuyat ako sa English para sa mga nagbabasa nak buko Asi ag para yumapar ka publiko nak sa ako pagpamutang ay dapat makarungog ak makatagam it ibang yuto; ag sa Asi kung ka ako mensahe ay partikular sa ako mga ka-tribo.

Sa tuyar nak pagpapamatu-or, ka pagkaykay ni Fabicon sa primerong gakor it mga lengguwaheng Romblomanon ay asa panahon. Dapat yang nak tuytuyon nato ka ging busri-an it RDL-CLEAR ag www.sanrokan.com sa parayan it paghingab ag pag panghakay it hangin it ato sariling mga bibisar-on.

Asi? The Concert: Rebirth of a musical culture

The Banton High School Alumni Association, headed by the tireless Lyndon Fadri, has joined Romblon’s cultural renaissance bandwagon, and will, with the support of Biniray 2009, mount a musical extravaganza at the Arellano University Gym on Legarda Street, Manila, starting at 6:00 P.M. on August 8.

This concert is for all: Romblomanons and non-Romblomanons alike.

If you are an Asi, you must block this date in your calendar and come. If you are an Unhan, you should set aside whatever you plan to do on that day and attend the event, aptly called Asi? The Concert. If you are an Ini, show up at the concert. You will be richer in emotional experience after.

If you are not a Romblomanon, but are a culture buff—interested in how the Asi weave their emotional dreams and aspirations and express their take on the current issues of the day through the universal language of music, I invite you to attend.

A ticket to the concert costs P250.00. Call 556 17 62 to reserve one.

With that sales pitch out of the plate, I will tell you more about the concert. Read on.

The biggest attraction of Asi? The Concert is, well, the singing talents of my ancient tribe, the Asi, a proud and brave Filipino race which antedates the coming of the Spaniards and whose members occupy the islands of Banton, Sibale and Simara and who founded the Asi towns of Calatrava and Odiongan in Tablas Island, Romblon’s biggest.

We, the Asi, have our own distinct cultural heritage, including a musical culture that the tribe’s cultural pillars recently started to propagate and promote. Thus, all the songs on the concert will be in Asi, our own language.

This language is unique and so rich that if I were an official of government, say, a congressman, I will push for its inclusion among the languages that are being used as basis in the development of the constitutionally-mandated Filipino national language. Yes, Virginia, there is such, but let us deal with that in another time.

So, if you are a non-Asi Romblomanon attending the concert, I urge you to bring with you the Tuk-anan, the first Asi dictionary that Lyndon Fadri published, to be able to better appreciate the joy and pathos of the Asi’s musical soul. Call him at 0918 918 2178.

Singing talents Catherine Lea Fietas-Beltran and Al Jandy Fadriquela have signified to participate in the concert. A group from Sibale, called IngSaBat will also join and sing two or three of my compositions. I will sing, if the weather cooperates.

The lead performer at the concert will be 1622-Unang Usbor, Romblon’s only performing band, which in my language will continue to be so unless other tribes in the province come out and disprove me.

The 1622: Unang Usbor has performed in April in Sibale and in May in Simara. Last February, they invaded the Asi population of Batangas with a post-Valentine concert and proved to all and sundry that Asi songs have not only an appreciative audience. They also promise to be with us while we continue to have babies to be lulled to sleep and emotions to express.

The Asi singing is a miniature replica of Philippine society casting out the devils of its impoverished, dilapidated, and oppressed existence. I make these comments in the context of the extraneous purposes of the concert, which are to raise funds for the BHSAA Scholarship and Medical Mission Funds and for the Biniray, Banton’s religious mecca.

I mind very much that private citizens like Lyndon have to supplant the provincial government’s role in ensuring that Romblomanons are well-educated and healthy. For if the likes of Rep. Budoy Madrona and Gov. Jojo Beltran are true to their calling as public servants, they would flush with shame in knowing that it is civic groups, like Lyndon’s, that are minding the public welfare.

But this is a parenthetical thought. The concert is what matters at the moment. “Our goal is to promote cultural heritage, provide local talents exposure to a bigger audience and help hone their talents, and promote closer ties between the Asi-speaking Romblonons,” Lyndon says.

Noble, these objectives are.

Lyndon is not alone, though in his admirable efforts.

There is the Asi Studies Center for Culture and the Arts (ASCCA) which, since September 2008, has been working tirelessly to build the musical skill of 1622-Unang Usbor.
The ASCCA derives much support from the online group RDL-CLEAR, which is on the forefront of educational, cultural and economic initiatives in the province. RDL-CLEAR members may be anonymous, but without them, ASCCA would not have been able to mount on its own its various cultural projects.

In the Philippines, ASCCA’s project director is another Asi. She is Nota Magno, who teaches anthropology at the Ateneo de Manila University. Ms. Magno’s invaluable efforts in the Asi’s cultural revival could put to shame our politicians’ years of strutting on the corridors of power. These politicians are a bunch of useless ignoramuses when it comes to Romblon culture.

“As artists,” Ms. Magno says, referring to the members of 1622-Unang Usbor, “their relevance is in the cultural work (that) they do for the Asi of Banton and of Romblon, not only the music that they bring. Their work extends from raising music appreciation among the Asi to the revival of the Asi language, a crucial element of Asi cultural heritage”.

The preservation, propagation and promotion of culture may be a lonely kind of work, but it is its own rewards.

On August 8, it will be time for these rewards to be harvested. Join us in the concert and share in the bounty of the Asi’s musical heritage.