Celebrities take time out in Iriga

Iriga City, Philippines — The Katinko All-Stars Team of Ronnie Ricketts, Bayani Agbayani, Jestoni Alarcon, Jhong Hilario, Bong Alvarez, Gene Padilla and Rey Jhun Vijar played hard ball against the city’s local cagers with a twist. The celebrities spoofed the game and made fun of it. They cheated and provided comedic stints in the course of the ball game. The crowd and their competitors were left stunned and laughing. The recently-held celebrity basketball exhibition here was reminiscent of Harlem Globetrotters.

“We’ve been doing this for two years now,” says Iriga City Mayor Madelaine Alfelor-Gazmen of the sports event. “It is a way of giving back to the people the taxes they have been paying and diverting their attention to sports away from drugs and illegal gambling.”

The exhibition is one of the local government’s preventive measures against substance abuse. It reveals the pro-active attitude of Mayor Alfelor-Gazmen towards issues concerning her people and place.

It is not surprising Iriga City has a zero crime rate. Touring the city is like walking the streets and thoroughfares of Singapore — clean and safe. Achieving the peace and order of Iriga was never done overnight. When the lady mayor assumed office, she also faced drug-related cases. But she wasted no time to launch an all-out war against substance abuse. And it was eventually eradicated.

That’s why the mayor is always on the lookout at every chance she gets to show her constituents what a healthy lifestyle is. Ronnie, who has Irigueño roots, and his team were the mayor’s recent guests. Ronnie’s advocacy against drugs started in 1998 when he became the president of Actors’ Guild. His team has been going around the country since then to spread the fight against drug addiction.

Dinky Doo kicked off the event by performing a medley of American Rhapsody and Mamma Mia. He clowned around with everybody. Jhong, on the other hand, danced a sexy, lyrical hip-hop number to the delight of ladies in the crowd.

In spite of some dirty tactics and comic relief by the stars, Iriga’s top players led the first quarter with the 20-29 score and dominated the entire game in the next quarter with 17-point lead (59-42). The Katinko All-Stars Team exerted a lot of effort in the third quarter with 84-77 score to make the fight closer. The last quarter saw a neck-to-neck game between the two teams with a deadlock score of 92-92. Since it was just a friendly game, no five-minute overtime was given to determine the winner.

Aside from basketball competitions, there’s a volleyball meet come summer. Irigueños can also participate in inter-agency tilts in the month of November. The annual Miss Iriga is held in June. Recently, the official 20 candidates were announced.  

Although signs of progress are evident in this City of Crystal Clear Springs, the laid-back lifestyle is written in every nook and cranny of Iriga. It relaxes your wandering mind and calms your restless spirit. Irigueños get up early in the morning and work hard till sunset. Most shops and stores are closed at eight in the evening. There are also no gimmick bars to go to. Young people strictly follow the 10 p.m. curfew. With that, Iriga’s best products are its people aside from laing and pinangat. It is part of making Iriga the Character City.

“It reminds everyone of the goodness and kindness within them,” shares the mayor. “People tend to forget the importance of being courteous or cordial and practising Mano Po nowadays.”