SOURCE: Cris Evert Lato, Jhunnex Napallacan
Cebuano friends of President Benigno Aquino III made a wish for him as he came here for his first official participation as the head of state in the Sinulog Festival: find a Cebuana girlfriend.
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Cebuano friends of President Benigno Aquino III made a wish for him as he came here for his first official participation as the head of state in the Sinulog Festival: find a Cebuana girlfriend.
This was revealed by the President himself in the middle of his short speech at the Cebu City Sports Center’s grandstand, where the culminating performances were staged by the festival’s dancing contingents.
The audience clapped and cheered when the President said in Cebuano that his Cebuano friends wished him to find a girlfriend at the Queen City of the South.
“Before coming here, my Cebuano friends told me, ‘Hinaut unta makakita ka og hinigugma diha sa Sugbo (We hope you will find a girlfriend in Cebu),” he quoted his friends.
But the bachelor President was quick to say that he has become in love with the charm of the city and hospitable nature of the Cebuanos.
He went on to praise the Cebuanos for staging “one of the best festival organizers in the country.”
“This event (Sinulog) is a joy to celebrate” he told an audience of some 13,000 people.
He described the Sinulog festival as a celebration of the Cebuanos and the Filipinos’ dreams and values.
The Cebuanos, he said, has preserved a valuable part of the Filipino tradition and made us remember our past in order to enrich our future.
“We look back as one and as one we also dream. As we build our dream, we realize our aspirations… (The Sinulog)is a way of strengthening our optimism as we face challenges. It is important to note (that the Sinulog) brings to core our inherent strength as a people,” he said.
Mr. Aquino in his speech also used the occasion to ask the Cebuanos to extend prayers and help for the flood victims in the country.
The President arrived in the grandstand at 10:15 a.m. and immediately delivered his speech after he was introduced by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama.
He only stayed for more than an hour to witness the performances of the Cebu City Government contingent and the Bonga Festival of Sibonga town, Cebu province, which featured Governor Gwendolyn Garcia as the festival queen.
An amused Aquino clapped and smiled throughout the performance of the lady governor. Mr. Aquino was seated beside Cebu City south district Representative Tomas Osmeña, the former mayor of the city.
He left the grandstand at 11:26 a.m. He did not grant any media interview.
But while President Aquino could be a friendly president, the strict security imposed by his security details surprised some reporters who covered the Sinulog grand parade.
Before the President arrived, the staff of the Philippine Information Office in Central Visayas (PIA 7) told reporters that the President might hold a press briefing at the media lounge at the ground floor of the grandstand and advised them to be there before the President’s entry.
However, members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) rudely stopped reporters from getting into the lounge. The press conference was called off without explanation.
Aquino stayed at the VIP area at the grandstand after his speech and briefly met and talked with some local officials including Mayor Rama, Representative Osmeña and newly installed Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma.
Hilario Davide III, the Liberal Party’s Cebu provincial chairman and defeated gubernatorial candidate, said the President, who witnessed the Sinulog Festival for the first time, was impressed with the performances of the contingents.
Rama said he was proud the President still found time to witness the event, even if it resulted to strict security measures at the sports center.
The audience clapped and cheered when the President said in Cebuano that his Cebuano friends wished him to find a girlfriend at the Queen City of the South.
“Before coming here, my Cebuano friends told me, ‘Hinaut unta makakita ka og hinigugma diha sa Sugbo (We hope you will find a girlfriend in Cebu),” he quoted his friends.
But the bachelor President was quick to say that he has become in love with the charm of the city and hospitable nature of the Cebuanos.
He went on to praise the Cebuanos for staging “one of the best festival organizers in the country.”
“This event (Sinulog) is a joy to celebrate” he told an audience of some 13,000 people.
He described the Sinulog festival as a celebration of the Cebuanos and the Filipinos’ dreams and values.
The Cebuanos, he said, has preserved a valuable part of the Filipino tradition and made us remember our past in order to enrich our future.
“We look back as one and as one we also dream. As we build our dream, we realize our aspirations… (The Sinulog)is a way of strengthening our optimism as we face challenges. It is important to note (that the Sinulog) brings to core our inherent strength as a people,” he said.
Mr. Aquino in his speech also used the occasion to ask the Cebuanos to extend prayers and help for the flood victims in the country.
The President arrived in the grandstand at 10:15 a.m. and immediately delivered his speech after he was introduced by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama.
He only stayed for more than an hour to witness the performances of the Cebu City Government contingent and the Bonga Festival of Sibonga town, Cebu province, which featured Governor Gwendolyn Garcia as the festival queen.
An amused Aquino clapped and smiled throughout the performance of the lady governor. Mr. Aquino was seated beside Cebu City south district Representative Tomas Osmeña, the former mayor of the city.
He left the grandstand at 11:26 a.m. He did not grant any media interview.
But while President Aquino could be a friendly president, the strict security imposed by his security details surprised some reporters who covered the Sinulog grand parade.
Before the President arrived, the staff of the Philippine Information Office in Central Visayas (PIA 7) told reporters that the President might hold a press briefing at the media lounge at the ground floor of the grandstand and advised them to be there before the President’s entry.
However, members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) rudely stopped reporters from getting into the lounge. The press conference was called off without explanation.
Aquino stayed at the VIP area at the grandstand after his speech and briefly met and talked with some local officials including Mayor Rama, Representative Osmeña and newly installed Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma.
Hilario Davide III, the Liberal Party’s Cebu provincial chairman and defeated gubernatorial candidate, said the President, who witnessed the Sinulog Festival for the first time, was impressed with the performances of the contingents.
Rama said he was proud the President still found time to witness the event, even if it resulted to strict security measures at the sports center.
