BAGUIO CITY – Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Cesar Dulay rallied organizers of the Panagbenga, the Baguio Flower Festival, to sustain the gains of the festival as a venue to pass on the rich culture, heritage and traditions not only of the Cordillerans but also the Filipinos to the upcoming generations.
Commissioner Dulay, the guest of honor and speaker during the Panagbenga’s grand streetdancing parade and field demonstration at the Baguio Athletic Bowl, was impressed with the dynamic and sterling performance of the young streetdancers who spent much time, effort, and resources to thrill the thousands of spectators on their unique performances.
He said the Panagbenga established its identity as one of the must-see festivities in the country through the unity, teamwork and solidarity of the stakeholders to provide the needed avenue for the aggressive promotion of the rich history, culture, heritage and traditions of the Cordillerans.
However, the BIR official also pointed out that because Baguio city is a melting pot of people from diverse cultures locally and internationally, the country’s Summer Capital should continue growing with this diversity and get together by participating in various festivities like the Panagbenga.
“We have to be aggressive in our efforts to preserve our rich culture and traditions, not only as Cordillerans, but also as Filipinos. Let us pass on to the coming generations the culture and traditions that bonded us through time so we can preserve the traditions passed on to us by our forefathers,” Commissioner Dulay stressed.
He admitted that during his younger days in Mankayan, Benguet together with Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan, they also participated in cultural presentations showcasing the different culture and traditions of Cordillerans so it is still best to start teaching the youth the cultural practices of the people wherever community they live in for them to appreciate and learn about the same.
He, however, observed that the members of cultural dance troops them were much sturdier compared to the youth cultural presentors today but what is important is for them to properly execute their performances with authenticity and with utmost mastery to preserve the integrity of the practices of the indigenous peoples s of Cordillerans.
According to him, sustaining the conduct of similar festivals in other parts of the region will definitely play a key role in advancing the efforts of the present generations to preserve their age-old culture and traditions and for the same to be perfectly passed on to the upcoming generations to keep the region’s heritage alive.
Commissioner Dulay urged the youth to be actively involved in heritage and culture-related activities in their schools and in the communities to help them understand the way of life of the indigenous peoples and for them actively participate in efforts of stakeholders to preserve and protect these culture and traditions that have been passed on to them by their forefathers.
By Dexter A. See
