GMA inaugural, ball in Cebu

Cebu City will host a historic first at high noon on June 30: President Arroyo’s inaugural and the inaugural ball.

Mrs. Arroyo and Vice President-elect Noli de Castro will take their oaths of office before Chief Justice Hilario Davide in the capital city of Davide’s home province.

Cebu province was the catalyst for Mrs. Arroyo’s proclamation as the 14th president of the Republic as it was where she garnered most of the crucial votes that widened her margin of victory over actor Fernando Poe Jr. in the May 10 presidential election.

It is in Cebu City where the President will accept her full six-year term and deliver her inaugural address.

Before flying to Cebu City, Mrs. Arroyo will deliver a message to the nation at Quirino Grandstand at 8 a.m. and witness a civic-military parade organized in her honor by the Department of Tourism.

Mrs. Arroyo flies to Cebu at 10 a.m. after the "extravaganza show" at Manila’s Rzal Park, which will feature personalities from the local entertainment industry, including veteran actress Nora Aunor and young actress Jolina Magdangal.

The President and De Castro will host the traditional vin d’honneur for the diplomatic community in Cebu’s Shangri-La Hotel at 1 p.m.

Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal will celebrate a thanksgiving Mass for the President at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, after which Mrs. Arroyo and De Castro will attend the mass oath-taking of newly elected congressional and local government officials of the province.

Malacañang’s preparations for the oath-taking and inaugural of the President were turned up to full throttle yesterday, overseen by Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo, who has given specific "tasks" to each Cabinet member concerning their respective departments and agencies immediately after Congress proclaimed Mrs. Arroyo and De Castro the winners in the presidential and vice-presidential elections.

Most of the President’s Cabinet, Romulo included, were present at the proclamation rites that marked the end of a marathon plenary session that extended over 11 hours.

The executive secretary joined the Cabinet vigil in the session hall gallery at the Batasan Pambansa complex in Quezon City while the canvassing report of the 22-member joint canvassing committee was taken up on the floor by legislators from both chambers of Congress.

However, since the country’s top executive and legislative officials lacked sleep, a Cabinet meeting previously scheduled at the Palace today was canceled.

Romulo instructed his colleagues in the Cabinet to prepare for their respective roles in the inaugural rites.

Ambassador and presidential adviser on state visits Marciano Paynor Jr. flew to Cebu Tuesday to make preparations for the planned inaugural activities in the province Mrs. Arroyo credited with giving her "an overwhelming mandate."

Organizing committee member Cerge Remonde said the planned street-dancing would be stricken from the President’s post-inaugural celebration in Cebu City to keep it "austere and simple."

The President, Remonde said, will deliver her formal inaugural address in Cebu City, where she has consistently won big in several elections, beginning with her campaigns for a seat in the Senate in 1992 and 1995 and for vice president in 1998.

Mrs. Arroyo earlier accepted the invitation of Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña to hold her inaugural reception at the Sinugbayanihan or street-dancing and open-air, grilled food fiesta along Fuente Osmeña Boulevard, which will be closed to vehicular traffic from afternoon to evening for the celebration.

Osmeña proposed the use of the Cebu City Sports Complex as a "closed venue" for the oath-taking rites to address the security requirements of Presidential Security Group (PSG) commander Col. Delfin Bangit.

At least 5,000 police personnel and soldiers will secure the Quirino Grandstand and the area in Cebu where Mrs. Arroyo will take her oath of office in a security blanket meant to prevent the disruption of the inaugural rites.

Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman Chief Superintendent Joel Goltiao said other government forces will also be deployed in key areas in Cebu and Metro Manila to deal with any threats, including those posed by terrorists.

According to Goltiao, the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines will be actively involved in the security of the President, though the PSG will handle her close-in security.

The PNP also has contingency plans for lightning rallies and other mass actions in Metro Manila, he said, adding that security will be tightened in all seaports, airports hotels and roads.

Palace protocol chief Lingling-ay Lacanlale said they see no problem in transporting dignitaries slated to attend the inaugural rites in Cebu City, since similar procedures were followed during last year’s Independence Day vin d’honneur reception in Zamboanga City.

Meanwhile, three Cebu City congressmen welcomed plans for the President’s inaugural in Cebu City.

"We are truly gratified that the President has chosen Cebu for her inaugural site, which only shows her gratitude and affinity with people in the south," said Rep. Antonio Cuenco, who is the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) district chairman of Cebu.

He said "the inauguration is a major event being looked forward to by Cebuanos as the President is expected to spell out more of her programs for the next six years."

"We want to hear what the Filipino can expect in the first 100 days of her office," Cuenco said.

Rep. Joseph Ace Durano said that "it is with pleasure and pride that we welcome the President’s inaugural in Cebu and become part of such a historic event."

Mrs. Arroyo is "the only direct descendant of a former president to be elected to the same office," former Isabela congressman Rodolfo Albano said. Mrs. Arroyo is the daughter of former President Diosdado Macapagal.

"The dawn proclamation is a good start for everyone, especially the President and Vice President, who now face the gargantuan task of uniting the country and steering it towards prosperity," Bacolod City Rep. Monico Puentevella said.

Pampanga Rep. Oscar Rodriguez discouraged rallies, urging the people instead to "move on as a nation," adding that the opposition "should have the heart to help rebuild the country after the ruins caused by too much political bickering."

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the President’s inaugural theme will focus on her calls for unity and reconciliation.

Mrs. Arroyo, Bunye said, "wants to unite this deeply divided nation. She is praying for a brighter future for the nation. At this time, she just wants to concentrate on the substance of the theme rather than on the specifics."

She is now finalizing the priority agenda for her first 100 days, which she intends to present to the people in her first State of the Nation Address (SONA) as the country’s 14th elected president.

"We will continue to reach out to the other side," Bunye said. "The President will pursue very vigorously her six-point program - (for) education, health, electrification, clean water - the very basic services," he said. — Marichu Villanueva, Delon Porcalla, Jaime Laude