LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The winners of the 2023 “Dad-at” (Short Story), “Ba-diw” (Poetry), and Essayist Awards were announced Friday evening, April 28, 2023, during the awarding ceremony and closing program of the Benguet Indigenous Youth Arts Guild (BIYAG) Festival.
“Dad-at” or Short Story Writer of the Year was awarded to John Ray A. Pucay, while honorable mentions were given to Juman Kevin Tindo, Kevin Claud Beray, and Cleevimae Oyan. Alexee Jaezhelle Pugong, on the other hand, took home the “Ba-diw” or Poet of the Year Award, a category in which Princess Olive Lauyan and Azy Dio-as were given honorable mentions. Meanwhile, the Essayist of the Year Award was given to Clinton Bayote while Venice Mae Kiong and Vjnhyl Zam Pondivida received honorable mentions under this category.
The three awardees received plaques of recognition and P5,000.00 cash prize, while the honorable mention recipients were given certificates of recognition.
Governor Dr. Melchor Daguines Melchor Diclas has long been wanting to have an activity for aspiring young writers in the province which is the reason for the inclusion of the Creative Writing Workshop Fellowship or “Ped-agan” initiated and mobilized by Dr. Ryan Guinaran, the Governor’s Chief Executive Assistant, in the celebration of the BIYAG Festival.
Through the “Ped-agan,” young writers are given opportunities to develop their skills and build networks with their co-local writers. National awardee writers are tapped as lecturers during the workshop to provide technical assistance and share their knowledge on the processes of publishing literary works.
The recent “Ped-agan” was held at the Benguet Agri-Tourism Farm in Bulala, Sablan, Benguet and the speakers were Dr. Joti Tabula, President, Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika at Anyo (LIRA); Dr. Luis Gatmaitan, Chairperson of the National Council for Children’s Television (NCCT) and a Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards Hall of Fame awardee; Dr. Ryan Guinaran, awardee of the Catholic Mass Media Awards-Cardinal Sin Catholic Book Awards for Children and Youth; and Ms. Heather Ann Pulido, 2022 Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards-Short Story for Children Third Placer.
BIYAG 2022 Fellows who published their books after the 2022 workshop composed the panelists. They are Ronald S. Fernandez (Silhouettes of Dead Stars over the Cordillera Range), Richard A. Giye (The Visiting Moth: Collection of Select Stories and Essays), Jovener S. Soro (Sulatin ni Manasseh), Amelita C. Wansi (Supernovial), and Silverio Jr. A. Pilo (PuLaG). By SAP Jr.
