Public memory and ignorance

A.Paulita Roa

WE, Kagay-anons like the rest of the peoples of the world have  memories about certain places in our land. We often bring our children and friends to those sites in order to reminisce and share why these places are memorable to us. This is in part an exercise of what is known as “public memory.”

The Community Amphitheater popularly called the “Amphi” has evoked countless wonderful memories since it was the center of the city’s cultural, social and political events for many decades. This was built during the administration of Mayor Justiniano R. Borja and part of the funds came from the then Miss Cagayan de Oro beauty contests. We were proud of our Amphi for its unique design and was located near the Cagayan River.

Then, by a mere stroke of a pen,this heritage structure was ordered demolished and replaced by an ugly one that has kept many guessing if it is an  unfinished bridge or a diving board. Below is a police station and a haven for the blind masahistas and their clients in the evening.

Until now,the public memory of the Amphi is still strong as I hear friends who shared with me why it was special to them and of the collective anger and sadness felt by the locals over its loss.

“The celebration of American heritage can often be read from the American landscape, and it can be reinforced through material culture such as museums and monuments.” Paul A. Shackel. “Public Memory and the Search for Power in American Historical Archaeology” (2007)

We have nothing to celebrate and be proud of in our city as our heritage resources are dwindling and in danger of being obliterated like in the case of our beloved Amphi because we have the misfortune of having officials who are either culturally insensitive or do not know our history.

As you travel in Europe, you see centuries old buildings and parks that are well preserved with the locals helping to maintain their heritage resources. Here, no such thought and even respect is given by the powers that be as they pull down a heritage structure or  renovate a heritage site without bothering to know its historicity and even the feelings of the Kagay-anons.

This is what happened to the Amphi and Gaston Park. And God forbid if in the near future Plaza Divisoria will be further renovated to the point that we will feel that we are in an alien land with no public memory or association of the place at all.

Then there is the case where our national historical marker known as the “Labanan sa Cagayan de Misamis” has been removed in its hallowed spot in Gaston Park a few months after City Mayor Oscar S. Moreno assumed office in 2013. The Cagayan de Oro Historical and Cultural Commission was not  consulted about this transfer and Mayor Moreno virtually ignored the letter of appeal from then chair, Lourdes la Viña, to return this marker to its original site that faced the St. Agustine General Hospital.

This hospital was once the site of the Club Popular where on Jan. 26, 1900, the local citizenry gathered and signed the historic Pact of Resistance where they vowed to fight the Americans should they come to their shores for they wanted to preserve their newly found freedom. most of those who died in the Battle of Cagayan de Misamis and the other two battles were signers of that pact that was then known as the “juramento.”

For the information of the public, this is a prestigious historical marker that is owned by the national government. The city government is mandated by law to care for it in perpetuity. By its installation in Gaston Park last April 7, 2000 during the centennial of the Battle of Cagayan de Misamis by no less than the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (formerly the National Historical Institute), it signifies that this battle is now part of national history. Because of this, Gaston Park is included in the Registry of National Heritage Sites of the country by the NHCP.

As of now, the marker was brought back to the park but it is placed on a new spot–it is  facing City Hall. Also, since the discovery of many artifacts in Gaston Park in June 2011, the park is considered by the National Museum of the Philippines as an archaeological site and has been given a site code. The City Museum has a letter signed by Wilfredo P. Ronquillo, then head of the Archaeology Division who examined the artifacts and attested to its genuineness.

But we have lost forever the only park in the whole city with an expansive greenery. Unfortunately, it is now concreted and tiled. So how can we do further archaeological investigations there?

I like what R.F. Langford wrote–that “our past, our culture and heritage forms part of our present life. and as such, it is ours to control and it is ours to share on our terms.” However, with what is going in recent years, it seems that our heritage resources have dwindled because they are in the hands of a few who controlled it and has succeeded in doing whatever they wished, based on their own ideas and of the fact that they are either ignorant nor have no regard of our history. Pastilan!