It was like Good Friday

Last Sunday, Bacolod was gripped by an electric silence similar to Good Friday. But there was none of the mournful tension. Instead, the whole city was gripped by expectant tension that later erupted into cheers and jubilation when Manny Pacquiao clobbered Erik "El Terrible" Morales.

I made it a point not to watch the live telecast at the University of St. La Salle. I purposely did it to catch the atmosphere in the city during the Pacquiao-Morales match.

It was just eerie. There were only a few vehicles going around. Most were parked in places where giant screens were put up to catch either the delayed telecast or the live TV show.

But it was also a double victory for Bacoleños. The night before acting Mayor Renecito Novero lifted the barricade at the corner of Circumferential Road in Mandalagan with the heir of the Belleza family agreeing to open a portion of the Carlos Hilado Highway to traffic.

This, after Public Works and Highways Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane promised to address the issue at the soonest possible time.

Last Friday, the Belleza family barricaded the road with wooden roadblocks and culverts, preventing scores of sugarcane trucks and other heavy cargo carriers from using the highway.

That also gave rise to traffic snarls in interior roads like B.S. Aquino Drive, Lacson street, Banago-San Juan and C.L. Montelibano Drive.

Aleja Belleza claimed that the DPWH still owes the family some P28 million in road-right-of-way payments for some 511,000 square meters included in the road construction project during the term of former President Corazon Aquino.

The Supreme Court last week declared Belleza as the legal owner of Lot No. 3192 in the area.

Novero thanked the Bellezas for agreeing to the conditions proposed both by the city government and the DPWH.

Well, that to a certain extent removed a major obstacle that hampered the milling of sugarcane by several sugar centrals in Central Negros, Victorias Milling Company, Hawaiian Philippines, and the First Farmers.

Definitely, it was a crisis. Just the Friday losses must have reached millions of pesos with some of the sugarcane exposed to the blistering heat of the fierce sun.

Novero explained to the Bellezas that the road closure might jeopardize the provincial economy. Instead, the acting mayor appealed to the Bellezas that while the legal battle goes on, they should open the road "rather than put another man’s life at risk."

Well, as I said, that gave Bacolodnons a sigh of relief last Sunday.

Thus, most city folk had their eyes trained on the Pacquiao-Morales bout which ended with the "Terrible" glassy-eyed in the third round when the Filipino southpaw downed him for the final count.

Negros Occidental Gov. Joseph Marañon dubbed Pacquiao’s victory as not only for the Philippines but also for the Negrenses who are very grateful for his achievement.

My youngest son, Jesus, was caught by surprise with the rapid ending of the bout. He was driving my car at the time when we heard over the radio what seemed an abbreviated bout.

Even my own daughter, Dr. May Irene Espina-Rife, expressed her sympathies for Morales. "It was a pitiful ending for a famed boxer," she commented upon hearing the report which she later saw on delayed telecast.

Acting Mayor Novero considered Manny’s victory an "extraordinary feat."

The Sangguniang Panglunsod is expected to pass a congratulatory resolution for Pacquiao, who has been declared officially an adopted son of Bacolod.

This was the reason why City Mayor Bing Leonardia was chosen once again by Pacquiao to carry the championship belt in Las Vegas. The first time was with Manny’s bout with Oscar Larios in Manila.

There was a jabbering crowd of 3,000 at the USLS Coliseum. Most were members of the Negrense elite. But they jumped and shouted each time Pacquiao unloaded a flurry of hooks and jabs that staggered Morales.

In most areas of Bacolod, residents witnessed the delayed telecast through wide screens installed in various areas.

At the L’Fisher Hotel, some 500 of Bacolod’s elite with their families watched the bout live. There were other big crowds of Bacoleños at the Bacolod City Hall grounds.

Crowds also gathered at Robinsons Mall, Gaisano Mall, and the three major public markets of the city — Libertad, Burgos, and Central Market.

For a while the city was virtually paralyzed as people focused their attention on the wide screens or, in some cases, had their ears glued to radios.

And, yes, there was hardly any report of crimes in the city.

But what escaped the notice of most was Morales’ answer to an interviewer after the bout. Speaking in Spanish, it seems that the translator must have glossed over Morales’ statement that he was already 30 and wondered how much more blows and contusions his body could tolerate before he reaches 35.

That, I thought, was the swan song from "El Terrible," the brawler from Tijuana City of Mexico.

P10-M damage suit

Dr. Ramon Guerra, West Visayas University Medical Center director, last week sued a resident doctor for maligning him over his decision to procure hospital equipment.

The respondent in the case, cardiologist Louie Tirador, said he is not bothered by the P10-million damage suit.

The case resulted from Tirador’s expose of alleged irregularities in the attempted P135-million purchase of CT scan, ultrasound, and X-ray machines through a lease-to-own scheme offered by Himex Corp.

WVUMC reportedly negotiated Himex’s offer after two failed biddings.

Tirador and some members of the College of Medicine Alumni Association said the hospital can buy cheaper equipment from other suppliers.

Earlier this year, the WVUMC board of regents stalled the transaction pending the fact-finding investigation of the Himex offer.

Lately, however, WVUMC opted to buy the whole set of machines also for P135 million payable in five years.

Tirador, in a series of TV and radio interviews, questioned the transaction. He claimed the fact-finding committee has yet to release its report on the Himex offer of a lease-to-own scheme.

He claimed their case against Guerra has the support and backing of the Iloilo Medical Society, the Philippine College of Physicians, and the Philippine Heart Association.

Well, as in most biddings, there are a lot of noise, charges and counter-charges. But how long will that situation last is anybody’s guess.

May reunion

The Dr. Graciano Lopez Foundation is gearing for the 150th birth anniversary celebration of the Ilonggo national hero. This is an affair that, according to Antique Gov. Sally Zaldivar-Perez, chairwoman of the Western Visayas Historical and Cultural Council, will be graced by President Arroyo who will preside over the ground-breaking of the shrine and museum of Lopez Jaena in Jaro, Iloilo City on Dec. 18.

Clan members of Lopez Jaena in Negros agreed that they will attend the Mass at the Iloilo affair. But they also set in motion plans for the May 2007 grand reunion to be hosted by the Fermin-Eustaquio branch of Lopez Jaena’s descendants in Silay City.

Among the major planners is Jesse Lopez who resides in Washington D.C., Maryland. Jess, who presided over last Saturday’s meeting at Bacolod’s Pearl Manor, said six Lopez families in the US have already pledged to attend the May reunion.

Romeo Lopez, of Victorias City, also said his daughter, Princess, a nurse in Dublin, Ireland, has promised to attend the reunion. So with several other siblings in Canada and the US.

In short, the Dec. 18 affair will draw to Iloilo the Negrense descendants of Lopez Jaena. But they also are preparing to gather again in May next year in Silay City where Lopez Jaena spent some time in the sugar farm of his younger brother, Pedro, before leaving for Spain.