Was Dagupan Win in Festivals of the North Lutong Macao?

By MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

Brgy. Pantal Delegation. Grand Champion of Festivals of the North Dancing
Competition.

Napakamalas naman nitong Vice Mayor sa Central Pangasinan, matapos makipag power-play sa pamamagitan ng pagbigay ng pera sa mga miyembro ng media para banatan ang mayor niya, tinanggalan  siya ng huli ng share  sa Jai-Alai (number game na parang jueteng) na P4000 kada araw.

“Mabuti iyan, iyong kada araw na binibigay ninyo sa kanya, iyan ang pinamumudmud niya sa mga kagawad ng media na pumupunta sa kanya para kumuha ng intriga laban sa kay mayor ninyo,” ani ng isang reporter na supporter ng alkalde.

Kawawa naman iyong mga media na tunay at peke. Mawawalan sila ng  P200 kada isa kada sesyon ng Sangguniang Bayan. Hindi kaya ni Vice Mayor na humugot sa sariling personal na pera niya para ma sustentuhan ang mga medyas, este, media niya sa psychological war na ito hanggang 2016 election.

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 In the recent Festival of the North Dancing Competition in Dagupan City, the city’s Barangay Pantal snatched the P400,000 grand championship trophy against contestants’ Zambales province Mango Festival champion and Ilocos Norte’s Pamulinawen Festival’s champion and others that hailed from different parts of the country.

“I overheard some folks talking that it was lutong Macao (home town decision). They said contestants as far as Mindanao would not be coming back in the city next year because of the home town decision. Please educate me how the judges there scored?” I posed to Dagupan City mayor Belen Fernandez in the recent press conference she called at the family owned Stadia in Lucao .

Fernandez said the delegation from Pantal really strut their stuffs well.
"The best dancers I saw in the country were those of the Dinagyang of Iloilo. But the sophistication of the Pantal dancers was 60% of those in Iloilo”.

Iloilo, the province of my parents, by the way did not join the Festival of the North.

Sharon Maramba, the de facto tourism officer of the city (the beleaguered office head, Rosemary Teng-Mejia, was in a floating status as she was identified with the past administration) said it was unfair to accuse the Pantal delegation.

She cited that no member of the board of judges came from the city.

 “No Dagupeno or Pangasinense was a judge in the National Commission for Culture & Arts".

Fernandez even assailed Teng-Mejia for tagging the Pantal delegation as members of the “Festival of the Props”.

“Unfair sa mga bata iyan. Naghirap at nagpuyat sila sa kapapa-practice tapos tawagin mo lang na “Festival of the Props”. 

(You can read my selected columns at http://mortzortigoza.blogspot.com and articles at Pangasinan News Aro. You can send comments too attotomortz@yahoo.com).