ILOILO City – Mayor Jerry Treñas said arts is the soul of Iloilo City and underscored the importance of supporting it and the art community.
Treñas emphasized this as he, together with Vice Mayor Jeffrey Ganzon, his wife Rosalie Treñas, and SM City Iloilo Assistant Mall Manager Darrel John Defensor, officially opened this year’s Iloilo Arts Festival at the SM City Main Mall Event Center on Wednesday, Oct. 5.
“Ang arts amo ni ang soul sang aton syudad. We see Iloilo City through our soul and we have always been saying that Iloilo is the Queen City of the South. We cannot be the Queen City of the South if we do not strengthen the soul of Iloilo City. And we can only strengthen the soul of Iloilo City if we support the arts,” the city mayor said.
The Iloilo Arts Festival, now on its second year, aims to bring art closer to the public and support local artists.
This undertaking is also part of the city government’s plan to make Iloilo City the “Arts Capital of the Philippines”.
The Sangguniang Panlungsod’s finance committee has committed to allot at least P2 million every year for the Iloilo Arts Festival.
Treñas earlier convened the Culture & Arts Council to discuss the proposed Iloilo City Culture and Arts Management Plan – a three-year strategic framework to develop and sustain Ilonggo heritage and name through culture and arts.
“Iloilo Arts Festival facilitated by my wife Rosalie does not only aim to showcase the masterpieces of our local artists. It also aims to encourage young aspiring artists to hone their skills and delve into creative industries. We want to see more Ilonggos make their passion their profession by giving them platforms and support for their creativity and artistry,” he added.
The city mayor also expressed his appreciation to the academe and private sector for supporting the city’s various undertakings.
“Nakit-an ko diri sa aton syudad, if there is something that we can be proud of, it is the very strong PPP (public-private partnership). Ara ang academe, ang business nagabinuligay para ma-achieve naton ang aton commitments. We will only become the Queen City of the South again if we continue to inspire and support our artists,” he added.
The Iloilo Arts Festival event launching coincided with the launching of the Adlaw sang Ciudad de Iloilo, or the Iloilo City Day, which was highlighted in Regulation Ordinance No. 2020-097, authored by Ganzon, declaring Oct. 5 as “Adlaw sang Ciudad de Iloilo.”
“Ciudad de Iloilo” is the Spanish translation of “Dakbanwa sang Iloilo”, the name given to Iloilo City when it was created.
Ganzon cited “Gaceta de Manila”, the official publication of the Spanish Colonial Government of the Philippines, which documented that it was on Oct. 5, 1889, by virtue of a Royal Decree, when Queen Regent Maria Cristina of Spain bestowed upon the then municipality of Iloilo the title of “City”.
On the other hand, renowned Ilonggo artist and local arts council’s Board of Director for Visual Arts Ed Defensor recalled how the city government, especially Treñas, showed support to the art community even when there were only a few artists yet starting up as a group.
“He was one of those very early who supported us. Wala pa sing nagabakal sang art sadto, wala pa sing naga-patronize and yet sya gid ang una-una nga nag-patronize sang amon mga arts… I am very grateful to him because asta subong ang iya pagsuporta sa amon,” Defensor said.
He also thanked SM City for being supportive since the very first exhibits at the mall in 2001./PN
