By Josephine C. Sanchez
Obando, Bulacan, north of Manila is widely known for its Fertility Dance ritual. Every year during summer the town celebrates its town fiesta with three days of merrymaking in honor of its three patron saints–the first on May 17 for San Pascual Baylon, May 18 for Santa Clara and May 19 for Our Lady of Salambao.
All three are patron saints of childless couples. Santa Clara is also the patron saint of good weather while Our Lady of Salambao is also the patron saint of fishermen. The story goes that 250 years ago on June 19, 1763 an image of the Immaculate Conception was fished out by three fishermen in their net called salambao, thus the monicker.
The traditional activities attract pilgrims from far and wide, mostly childless couples to soak up the vibes and sashay in abandon to the tune of the famous song Santa Clara Pinung Pino, sang in fandanggo fashion, the lyrics of which express their wish to have good health and the childless couples to have a baby. Huge statues of the three saints in gaily decorated carrozzas are borne by the merrymakers and their effervescence resonates deeply with expectation, mirth and joy.
A prominent Obandenian, the late Romulo “Ting” delos Reyes had put Obando on the map as tourist attraction when he became Director of the Department of Tourism. He authored the first documentation of Obando’s history in “Obando. Alamat ng Isang Sayaw (Obando, Legend of a Dance). In early 1970s Rev. Fr. Romeo Fernandez, then Obando’s parish priest who later became a Monsignor, collaborated with Ting to revive the dance festival tradition which was then banned by the Archbishop of Manila a few years after the war because of its pagan origin. After WWII Bulacan parishes were under the Archdiocese of Manila. The Diocese of Malolos was established in1961 after which it gained jurisdiction over parishes in Bulacan.
But this beautiful tradition may soon see its demise because of climate change and rapid urbanization. In recent years the flood problem in Obando, like Navotas, had worsened. Flood occurs not only during the rainy season but also in the summertime, especially during high tide. If this happens how could the traditional dance be held if the streets are inundated?
A recent article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer describes the disaster in its headline “Large Areas of Metro Manila Sinking” especially in the CAMANAVA region where Obando is in its pheriphery. (CAMANAVA is Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela). Dr. Alfredo Lagmay, an expert on geology and volcanology cited man-made causes of calamitous flooding as rapid but poorly planned urbanization and ground subsidence where water in the ground is extracted by humans faster than it is replenished by nature.
Another threat to Obando’s traditional culture are landfills. The municipal governments of both Obando and Navotas, with the national government (DENR) imprimatur have approved the landfills to boost income and manage waste. These are not bad reasons, if implemented and managed properly according to environmental laws. Furthermore the income generated from landfills is not worth the havoc and devastation it can cause on Obando’s environment and its gilded lore, God forbid!
The Tanza, Navotas dumpsite, which is along the coast and closer to Obando than the town center of Tanza, is seen as the major cause of water pollution in Obando. An investigative report by GMA 7 in its program “Imbestigador” in 2003 proved correct the claim of residents and fishermen that fish, crustacean and oysters are disappearing from Obando’s fishponds or floating on the river. Water sampling conducted inside and in the vicinity of the dumpsite confirmed pollution. Barges transporting trash to Navotas are allowed to pass by Obando. Trash falling off the barges in transit or upon delivery is unavoidable but this, along with daily trash that finds its way into the river, aggravate pollution. The foul odor from the dumpsite has permeated the air in surrounding areas all year round to the anger of residents and travellers, including merrymakers during the fiesta season.
To make matters worse, the municipality of Obando with the sanction of the provincial government and DENR approved on January 24, 2011 a 44.4-hectare sanitary landfill to be built on abandoned fishponds surrounded by the only remaining mangrove forest in Bgy. Salambao. Site criteria for building a sanitary landfill as stipulated in RA 9003 were violated and no public hearing was made to air grievances and concerns. Besides the fact that this area along Manila Bay is the focal point of the religious festival of Obando and there is a major concern of the dangers this sanitary landfill may cause. In a CBCP article in November 2011 Philvocs Director Renato Solidum Jr stated that Obando is highly vulnerable to flooding, storm surges and other environmental risks and the low and flat altitude of Obando is susceptible to liquefaction.
On Oct. 24, 2011 a motley group of public interest advocates with a wide-angle view of the issues, who call themselves Concerned Citizens of Obando led by a lawyer and wholeheartedly supported by Obandenian associations all over the world, filed a Petition for Writ of Kalikasan in the Supreme Court to stop all activities that harm the environment and adverse to the cultural and economic well-being of Obando. The writ was issued on Feb. 2, 2012. This did not stop the construction of the sanitary landfill, however, because as of this writing one cell is almost finished. The Supreme Court sent the case to the Court of Appeals where it has been pending for over a year now.
These environmental issues are affecting the value of the Obando tradition, in the sense that the river, once abundant with life is no longer abundant due to pollution.
Obandenyos have faithfully kept the tradition reflecting their unwavering dedication and they will keep it no matter what. The only thing that can stop them is when the flood comes during the week of festivities in the summertime. It’s a thought and scenario difficult to fathom and the three Obando saints forbid it to happen. For a community to lose its ability to express its identity through cultural pursuits is akin to losing identity itself. Culture defines a community and its expression enriches life beyond the daily acts of toiling and survival.
(This article is written in commemoration of the 250th year of Our Lady of Salambao)