Korina courts Maguindanao votes for Mar

Multimedia by Ferdinandh Cabrera

COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 12 Aug) – While presidential aspirant Mar Roxas was busy meeting up with congressmen from the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) to convince them to support his candidacy, his wife, TV anchor Korina Sanchez, was courting votes in Maguindanao.

“Napag-utusan lang. An abrupt text from my husband that a supportive wife has to follow the request of his loved one,” said Sanchez, who represented Roxas as guest speaker on Tuesday during the third anniversary and grand assembly of the Alliance of Lumad, Iranun and Maguindanaon (ALIM), the province’s most dominant political alliance thus far.

When asked on how her husband could win the Muslim votes, she did not directly answer how Roxas could win back the hearts of Bangsamoro, especially those sympathetic to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). 

They apparently have not forgotten the former chief of the Department of the Interior and Local Government to have led the opposition to the botched Memorandum of Agreement on the Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) and thus tagged him as an anti-Muslim official. 

Sanchez said that her husband’s political decisions are all his own. “I do not interfere. What I know, Mar loves Mindanaons,” she added.

She lashed at critics who said that Roxas lacks mass appeal, noting that her husband could not have garnered 14 million votes in the last elections if he is not loved by the masses. Roxas, although planned to run for presidency in 2010, gave way for Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III’s candidacy, serving as the latter’s running mate instead.

After a brief meeting with the media and breakfast with Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Gov. Mujiv Hataman and Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu, Sanchez met the hundreds of attendees of the political assembly of ALIM at the Shariff Kabungsuan Complex inside the ARMM compound. She told the crowd that Roxas is the best man to continue and nurture the “Daang matuwid” started by his protégé. President Aquino has officially endorsed Roxas as his successor.

While Maguindanao Vice Governor Datu Lester Sinsuat, who is also ALIM president and founding chairman, has assured Vice President Jejomar Binay of his support in the latter’s presidential bid during his visit in the municipality of Datu Odin Sinsuat to distribute wheelchairs, Gov. Mangudadatu said things have changed after the consensus of Liberal Party allies in Maguindanao and the commitment of ALIM members.

Mangudadatu said they will try their best to bring 300,000 or more votes for Mar Roxas with the slogan of continuing the “Daang matuwid” with the ALIM.

The governor said they trust Roxas because he is the one endorsed by President Aquino.

Mangudadatu said that in their last meeting in Davao City, he personally confronted Roxas on his stand on the BBL. Roxas reportedly assured Mangudadatu he is supporting the BBL.

Mangudadatu said the fruits of President Aquino’s “Daang matuwid” program will only be felt six years after the leadership that introduced it, as was the case in Malaysia and other countries. “That is why we need someone to continue the efforts we started,” he stressed.

Hataman also said that 95 percent of the elected officials in the ARMM are Liberal Party members. What they need, he pointed out, is only to consolidate the votes with the help of local allies.

ALIM started with seven town mayors three years ago; it now has 17 mayors under its umbrella. Maguindanao has 36 municipalities.

At the assembly last Tuesday, the group has expressed plans to include “Christian settlers” under its wing, from the present Lumads, Iranuns and Maguindanaons. It will then change its name to ALIMS. (END)

ARMM’s food festival tells more on peoples culture, tradition

By Ferdinandh Cabrera

The tribal groups in Muslim Mindanao can be identified through the food they prepare and offer to guests, so the saying goes.

This is what is happening in an “eat all you can” event inside the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) compound here as the Cultural Village highlights seven tribal groupings.

Dubbed as “Food Festival,” the seven tribal groups with makeshift village put up around the ARMM complex here, have offered traditional food and delicacies.

Visitors, mostly local officials and ordinary villagers visit, share, taste food at the Iranun village, one of the tribal groups, which present the tradional “Pagana.” 

Visitors were treated like special guests regardless of status in life. 

“Foods are everywhere, fruits too, how lovely to spend time here” said one of the visitors from Manila on a business trip here who dropped by the mock villages. 

“Only here in ARMM food festival,” he said of the food from Iranun village that included Muslim delicacies “Pyurs,” “Amik,” “Piaparan” and many more.

As the guests take sumptuous food, local artists performed “Kulintang” musical accompanied by a Muslim dance troupe.

In nearby booth was a “Tausug village” where fruits and sea foods ready to eat. Featured in the Tausug village from Sulu were traditional food known as “Tiyula Itum,” “Daral”, “Putli Mandi,” “Pasong” and many more.

Visitors were also treated with traditional Tausug dance and music.
Not far away were the, “Maguindanao”, “Maranao,” “Sama,” “Teduday,” “Yakan” and other minority tribal groups. 

Colorful flaglets, known as “Bandala,” litter around the compound in a very festive mode. Replicas of traditional houses are very visible.

One can tour and visit the ARMM through miniature villages where customs, traditions and traditional food are put forward.

“Through this miniature villages one can identify a tribal food because of the food, color, traditional dress and delicacies,we treat visitors like Sutans” Mayor Kits Guro of Matanog, Maguinanao said as he pointed to the Iranun village.

Mims Ayupan, a food chef judge, said visiting the mock villages place means you have “visited” the entire ARMM.

The cultural village was the brainchild of ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman to show to the world the rich culture of various tribal groups in the region. (END)

KAMPILAN DIVISION HOLDS PALARONG PINOY 2015

Camp Siongco, Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao – As the second semester of the year starts, the 6th Infantry (Kampilan) Division welcomes the rainy season with warmth and loud cheers through the conduct of an inter-unit/office sportsfest  that was participated in by the different offices and post units of the division headquarters. 

There were four competing teams: Yellow under the leadership of MGen Edmundo R Pangilinan; Red under Col Dickson P Hermoso ; Violet under BGen Manolito P Orense  and Blue team under Col Romeo S Brawner.

During the opening ceremony (01 August 2015), the different teams clad in their uniforms paraded in front of the 6ID grandstand and were led by their team captains and muses signalling the start of the activity. Each team also presented their well-decorated floats which were inspired by the theme “Palarong Pinoy”.

After the opening ceremony, a cheer dance competition followed wherein the top spot was bagged by the Yellow team followed by the red team, the blue team and the violet team. 

Other awards such as the Best Muse and the Best Float were won by the Red team. 

The teams then competed in the palarong pinoy which was composed of  kadang-kadang,  palosebo,  patintero and  gulong relay.

In his message, the Commander 6ID MGen Edmundo R Pangilinan said that it is always fun to unwind after a very hectic and tough first semester. 

He said that the sportsfest is intended for everyone to be able to practice esprit-de-corps and camaraderie among their team mates as well as to awaken the competitive spirit of the officers and personnel of 6ID in terms of sports and Filipino traditional games.

The sporstfest is expected to culminate by the end of August wherein the winners for the ball games will also be announced as well as the over-all champion for the  sportfest.