Legarda spends Mother's Day with whale sharks in Oslob

CEBU, Philippines - Senator Loren Legarda is dating the famous Oslob whale sharks in southern Cebu as her way of celebrating Mother’s Day today.

Legarda joined Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, Deputy Speaker Pablo Garcia and Rep. Pablo John Garcia in the inauguration of the heritage park and municipal museum in Oslob yesterday.

She also joined the Garcias in visiting the propose heritage site in Sibonga, but instead of going back to Cebu City, she decided to stay overnight in Oslob to catch the early morning surfacing of whale sharks in the municipal waters.

Legarda said she has been in Sorsogon but not to Donsol yet where the famous whale sharks can also be seen.

“I will next go to Donsol and compare the Cebuano butanding and the Bicolano butanding and see who is more charming or more aggressive or more shy,” Legarda told reporters.

However, Garcia cannot join Legarda’s whale watching today as she is scheduled to go to the Province of Pampanga.

Legarda is also set to fly to Surigao City right after her whale watching activity in Oslob. 

Though it is her first time in Oslob, Legarda expressed that she has been impressed by the Suroy-Suroy Sugbo program of Garcia in the Province of Cebu which promotes rural tourism.

Legarda believes in the preservation of heritage and she supports it.

“I support the eco-tourism and the cultural tourism that the municipality of Oslob and the Province of Cebu is doing,” Legarda said.

In her speech, Legarda congratulated the municipality of Oslob led by Mayor Ronald Guarin for being supportive in the program of the governor.

Legarda said she will tell her colleagues through a privilege speech in the Senate, that in Oslob, culture and heritage are valued.

 “Let this be a model for other towns in the country,” she said.

Legarda said that while they were deliberating laws in the Senate such as the Heritage Act two years ago, Cebu is already doing what exactly the law provides.

“You are peace-loving, law-abiding and culture-loving people and so I give tribute to that,” Legarda said.

Oslob culminated yesterday its fourth Heritage Week, highlighting the inauguration of their heritage park, municipal museum, unveiling of markers of Calle Aragones, the oldest street of Oslob in honor of Fr. Jose Aragones, Immaculate Conception Parish Church that was founded on May 4, 1830 but was gutted by fire on March 26, 2008.

It was restored on December 10, 2010. The church walls and gates built in 1875 were also unveiled along with the monument of Fr. Julian Bermejo. (FREEMAN)