THE EMPIRICAL truth to the saying worst times bring out the best in man has something to do with the present-day reality of Angeleños.
In the aftermath of the cataclysmic Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991 Angeles City was virtually turned into a rubble of destruction. Widespread desolation had forced human enterprise into a standstill. Community life reduced to a day-to-day struggle for survival.
Horrible adversity had spared no one, and the Angeles City leadership, saddled with the enormous burden of keeping alive whatever was left of the people’s flickering hope had to move fast, in resourceful ways.
First and foremost, to effectively mobilize the collective strength of the community, the leadership must revive the broken spirit of the people, rallying them into action by invoking the old bayanihan spirit—the traditional resiliency of the Filipino.
Massive and herculean rebuilding work was paralleled by a creative drive to stimulate the people’s enthusiasm, reminding Angeleños that they belonged to a proud race.
Thus was born such shibboleths as “Agyu Tamu” popularized by the administration of then Angeles City Mayor Edgardo “Ed” Pamintuan.
But what had so far captured the imagination of the people and gained spirited response was the staging of the annual street festivity called “Tigtigan Terakan” which were conceived and designed to lift the spirit of Angeleños as they recovered from the excruciating pain of the Mt. Pinatubo devastations.
Having grown up all my life in the city, I had never missed joining the festivities, and in those years, even as a boy, I felt a sense of community, camaraderie, oneness and unflagging spirit to go onward, no matter how difficult.
“Tigtigan Terakan” and later, the “Sisig Festival” which was initiated during the time of then Mayor and now Congressman of the first district, Carmelo “Tarzan” Lazatin had been eagerly anticipated events, especially among the young, who took elaborate measures to make their participation memorable and compelling.
Whole day-and-night revelry that lasted up the wee hours of the morning –dancing, singing, eating in one’s best fineries—joining the mass of humanity that poured onto main city streets, moving and merry-making as if following the beat and cadence of the baton of a single conductor. It had always been a spell-binding, overwhelming scene.
It is, therefore, quite a letdown for many Angeleños that there had been clear signs that the two festivals, which had become Department of Tourism-calendared events, had been trivialized, robbing them of their original allure and grandness as the centerpiece of our fiesta celebrations.
“Sisig Festival” has been completely dropped from the fiesta events. While “Tigtigan Terakan” had assumed a new term, as if it were but a footnote of a package of programs that failed to generate thrill and exhilaration that had suffused Angelenos in the past years.
Consciousness of our roots and pride in the history and culture must be grandly expressed and celebrated in the context of our present-day reality, even as we grapple with emerging challenges. In this sense, the “Tigtigan” and the “Sisig” Festivals have become a part of our identity as a people, a reminder of our triumphs.
Our fiestas are not only about lifestyle, political and social preferences, or how we do business. It’s deeper than that. The festivities embody a people’s attitude, culture, thoughts and values. Angeleños are fundamentally connected, traditionally fun-loving, warm and caring. We show this is our celebrations that demonstrate that everyone, every citizen, whatever his status is an integral part of the true Angeleño way.
Angeles had been one of the earliest cities to introduce street celebrations, bringing in throngs of visitors and curiosity seekers, many of them foreigners. Now that the city is a key part of the so-called global landscape of the region, we should all the more institutionalize the “Tigtigan” and “Sisig” festivities, similar to the Ati-Atihan in Kalibo, Aklan which as been compared to New Orleans’ “Mardi-Gras” and Brazil’s “Carnival in Rio.”
Allowing such famous Angeles fiesta events to die for utter lack of interest or misplaced priorities is like losing a part of our souls as true Angeleños.
In the aftermath of the cataclysmic Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991 Angeles City was virtually turned into a rubble of destruction. Widespread desolation had forced human enterprise into a standstill. Community life reduced to a day-to-day struggle for survival.
Horrible adversity had spared no one, and the Angeles City leadership, saddled with the enormous burden of keeping alive whatever was left of the people’s flickering hope had to move fast, in resourceful ways.
First and foremost, to effectively mobilize the collective strength of the community, the leadership must revive the broken spirit of the people, rallying them into action by invoking the old bayanihan spirit—the traditional resiliency of the Filipino.
Massive and herculean rebuilding work was paralleled by a creative drive to stimulate the people’s enthusiasm, reminding Angeleños that they belonged to a proud race.
Thus was born such shibboleths as “Agyu Tamu” popularized by the administration of then Angeles City Mayor Edgardo “Ed” Pamintuan.
But what had so far captured the imagination of the people and gained spirited response was the staging of the annual street festivity called “Tigtigan Terakan” which were conceived and designed to lift the spirit of Angeleños as they recovered from the excruciating pain of the Mt. Pinatubo devastations.
Having grown up all my life in the city, I had never missed joining the festivities, and in those years, even as a boy, I felt a sense of community, camaraderie, oneness and unflagging spirit to go onward, no matter how difficult.
“Tigtigan Terakan” and later, the “Sisig Festival” which was initiated during the time of then Mayor and now Congressman of the first district, Carmelo “Tarzan” Lazatin had been eagerly anticipated events, especially among the young, who took elaborate measures to make their participation memorable and compelling.
Whole day-and-night revelry that lasted up the wee hours of the morning –dancing, singing, eating in one’s best fineries—joining the mass of humanity that poured onto main city streets, moving and merry-making as if following the beat and cadence of the baton of a single conductor. It had always been a spell-binding, overwhelming scene.
It is, therefore, quite a letdown for many Angeleños that there had been clear signs that the two festivals, which had become Department of Tourism-calendared events, had been trivialized, robbing them of their original allure and grandness as the centerpiece of our fiesta celebrations.
“Sisig Festival” has been completely dropped from the fiesta events. While “Tigtigan Terakan” had assumed a new term, as if it were but a footnote of a package of programs that failed to generate thrill and exhilaration that had suffused Angelenos in the past years.
Consciousness of our roots and pride in the history and culture must be grandly expressed and celebrated in the context of our present-day reality, even as we grapple with emerging challenges. In this sense, the “Tigtigan” and the “Sisig” Festivals have become a part of our identity as a people, a reminder of our triumphs.
Our fiestas are not only about lifestyle, political and social preferences, or how we do business. It’s deeper than that. The festivities embody a people’s attitude, culture, thoughts and values. Angeleños are fundamentally connected, traditionally fun-loving, warm and caring. We show this is our celebrations that demonstrate that everyone, every citizen, whatever his status is an integral part of the true Angeleño way.
Angeles had been one of the earliest cities to introduce street celebrations, bringing in throngs of visitors and curiosity seekers, many of them foreigners. Now that the city is a key part of the so-called global landscape of the region, we should all the more institutionalize the “Tigtigan” and “Sisig” festivities, similar to the Ati-Atihan in Kalibo, Aklan which as been compared to New Orleans’ “Mardi-Gras” and Brazil’s “Carnival in Rio.”
Allowing such famous Angeles fiesta events to die for utter lack of interest or misplaced priorities is like losing a part of our souls as true Angeleños.
