Category Archives: Kalinga

Tabuk: Many Voices, One People

While researching on the Tabuk cityhood law, we came across this Tabuk situationer report (PDF File) which presents a comprehensive picture of the town’s socio-economic condition, the challenges it faces, and proposed solutions to these challenges.

Whoever made the report deserves a gold medal because it is well done and comprehensive. We hope that every local government unit would have a similar report so their officials, particularly the newly elected ones, will not be groping in the dark wondering what to do while they are in office.

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iTabuks to Vote on Cityhood

According to Kalinga Tambayan, our kailiyans in Tabuk will be voting this coming Saturday (June 23) on whether they would like their town to be converted into a city. We think it is unlikely that the Tabuk voters will reject cityhood given the benefits if their town becomes a city. So what are those benefits? A greater share in the Internal Revenue Allotment and iTabuks having more say in their local governance. Any disadvantages? None that we can think of.

Tabuk will be the second city in the Cordilleras if its voters approve the cityhood law. It is currently classified as a first class municipality.

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Who Owns Our Place Names and Cultural Icons?


When Mang Donald put up a restaurant and named it “Mang Donald’s”, he got sued by Mac Donald’s for trademark violation.

When a coffee company uses the name of our towns and provinces for its coffee products, shouldn’t we also be suing it for taking advantage of our place names? Surely it is not an accident that they are using our place names isn’t it? They are doing it because the names of our towns and provinces (in the pictures above from left: Ifugao Brew, Kalinga Brew, Sagada Brew, Benguet Brew) sound exotic and, in the coffee business, exotic sells. There is also some goodwill attached to our place names (in the same manner that there is some goodwill attached to the MacDonald’s brand) that the company wants to take advantage of.

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Congress Watch: It’s Your Money, Folks

Of course we all know that some people want to become Congressman/Congresswoman because they want to serve their constituents. And, of course, we also know that public service is not its own reward because congressional representatives have this thing called pork barrel (or Priority Development Assistance Fund) which they are allowed to disburse according to their heart’s content.

In Tagalog, bahala sila kung ano ang kanilang gagawin sa pera. We should bear in mind though that a Congressman’s or Congresswoman’s pork barrel is not really his/her own money but our money. So there should be no reason for us to be indebted to our congressional representatives mainly because they brought a project to our area. It’s not as if they used their own personal funds. Right?

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