THE EVOLUTION of Panay News from a fledgling weekly in 1981 to now the most widely-circulated and read regional daily is one for the books. It was a dream believed; it is now a reality.
Today marks a new milestone. At 40, we are like an eagle that has grown to full maturity, flying over seas and mountains of Western Visayas. Indeed, our logo shows a flying eagle. It mirrors the storied flight of Panay News. The fledgling or young bird learning to fly has grown with sturdy and wide wings, plus claws that enable it to hunt successfully all the time.
It was way back on April 7, 1981 when the first issue of this newspaper rolled off the press. It was some kind of gamble, with founder Danny G. Fajardo sinking his hard-earned income from his bus business to keep it going.
The logistical challenges were daunting. But our founder won’t be deterred. This is an industry that has so much public interest. The goal was clear: deliver to the Ilonggos in Panay reliable, credible and trusted news and information, stories that matter.
With no printing press of our own, we made the rounds of practically all printing presses in Iloilo City, always badgering for the lowest printing cost and the longest payment term. There was a time when Mr. Fajardo brought our entire manuscripts to in Manila to economize on cost. He flew back to Iloilo punishing himself with a heavy bundle of the week’s Panay News on his shoulder to and from the airplane.
As general agent of Paramount Insurance, he had offices in all provinces of Western Visayas. Those offices doubled as branch offices of the fledgling paper. There were very few persons making the staff – less than 10 in the entire region.
In San Jose, Antique, we had the good fortune of having Edith “Bong” Santillan Camiña – elder sister of Danny’s ever supportive better-half Mary – as branch manager, pro-bono. She did a good job of filing the early issues of Panay News – which have been archived for posterity.
Like a toddler learning to walk, we were willing to fall many times before finally succeeding. Now, here we are celebrating 40 years of serving Western Visayans, their most trusted daily reading companion.
But there is still so much work to do. The media landscape is changing and we’re facing it head-on, armed with valuable lessons and experiences from the past, and equipped with modern technologies.
In a sense, we’re starting a new journey. Life Begins Again @40. The goal remains clear as ever. We’re in the service of the Ilonggos./PN
