ZAMBOANG CITY, 14 July (PIA) – The Zamboanga City Local Council of Culture, Arts and History has appealed to City Mayor John Dalipe to support and fund the completion of cultural mapping in the remaining barangays of the city.
During its second quarter meeting, guest resource person Dr. Jose Genaro Aizon, president of the Collegio de la Ciudad de Zamboanga revealed that the cultural mapping project has only penetrated 43 out of 98 barangays due to budget cuts from previous administration. He proposed to complete the cultural mapping project with full budgetary support from the Dalipe administration.
“The cultural profiling and mapping are to help the city of Zamboanga to recognize, celebrate, and support cultural diversity for economic, social and regional development,” Aizon said.
The city budget office said that there is still budget under the Cultural Development Plan to support the completion of the project.
Dr. Aizon also presented the past cultural programs and projects of the City Council for Culture, Arts, and History, highlighting the volumes of books on Chavacano that they have produced during his nine years as secretariat of the council.
Meanwhile, Architect Ildefonso Torres Jr, city museum curator presented the many laws, ordinances, executive orders, and resolutions that were enacted or passed in support to culture and the arts in Zamboanga City. However, some key policies need to be revisited to ensure their full implementation, like the ordinance on the establishment of cultural spaces in Zamboanga and the creation of a heritage board. City Councilor Gerky Velasco, author of the said ordinance insisted on the urgency of the body. The local cultural body then passed a resolution asking the city mayor to expedite the implementation of the said ordinance.
In support to the preservation of the Chavacano language, the local cultural council also passed resolutions for the city gov’t to implement training programs and orientation on the chavacano language to teachers in Zamboanga City, provide markers with description to historical landmarks and monuments particularly the streets of Magay, Calle Nuevo, and Pueblo Vieho; encourage and support local historians to write more books on chavacano and local heritage; and to further encourage the use of chavacano in all local communication and correspondence, especially in the local government of Zamboanga City.
While, Zamboanga recognizes diversity, the local council still saw the need to strengthen its resolve to preserve the integrity of chavacano and Zamboangueño culture and heritage. (NBE/RVC/PIA9-Zamboanga)
