By: Telly Gonzaga-Ocampo

BACLAYON MARKET

Why is Baclayon’s Mercado more than just a market? Because it is “for the people, by the people, of the people.”

Please don’t get me wrong. I am for development — but development that is truly for the people, by the people, and of the people. Development that is anchored on due process. Let the people be heard. Open it to the people’s feelings and not just a one-way process.

I said my piece in last Sunday’s heritage and culture section. I asked permission from my editor if I could write about what is brewing in our town. Tungod kay “Tunog na Tunog” na, and everything is puzzling. Reactions to my article from friends far and near went viral. Is that the right word, viral? Many shared beautiful memories — not just of our mercado — but of the mercado of old in their respective hometowns. That only proves one thing: a mercado is never just a structure. It is memory. It is identity.

Can a good program for development create pandemonium in the minds of those who oppose it? Perhaps, if the process itself is confusing.

Most of those who expressed their views on the unsolicited proposal for the privatization of the mercado kay naglibog ug nakutaw ang utok. They came to be enlightened, but one question led to another, and another.

What the people actually knew

Most of the people knew of the plan only from the barangay assemblies. What was imprinted in their minds? Nindoton ang mercado — without the wherefores, the whys and hows of the development.

As far as I know, there was a consultation called by the mayor presenting the unsolicited proposal and the architectural plan, with a promise that vendors would not be relocated and would only be transferred for the meantime to the covered court while construction is ongoing — because there is a developer willing to invest and manage the market.

That sounded reassuring. But it is too sad that in yesterday’s consultation, those who attended to share their views were not even shown the proposed plan and the architectural perspective. Instead, they were given a one-hour reading of the contract of lease.

Pardon me for saying this: maayo tingali unta nga gitagaan ang mga tawo ug photocopies of the unsolicited proposal and the contract of lease.

  • Let the people read.
  • We have gray matters between our ears.
  • We have the capacity and capability to understand.

How can we give an informed consent if we are not allowed to see what we are consenting to? Transparency is not a threat to a good project. Transparency is what makes a good project trusted.

A collegial body, not a rubber stamp

The impression of those who attended is this: The executive and legislative must act as a collegial body. Ang madungog man gud kay: “Gisugo mi sa mayor to study the unsolicited proposal. Gisugo mi sa mayor pag scrutinize the contract before he will sign it.” I have a friend who told me: Tita, signature na lang sa mayor ang kulang. And that’s it, the deal done.

If that is the impression on the ground, then we have a serious problem of process. The Sangguniang Bayan is not there to be told what to do. It is there to deliberate, to check, to balance. To be the voice of the people when the people are not in the room.

That prompted me to write, with permission from my managing editor whom I call my BFF Ms. Ardy Araneta Batoy. She even asked me: “Are you prepared to face criticisms and pagyam-id  unya sa katawhan because of your advocacy? And remember, the mayor is your nephew and you are his maninay, right?”

True enough, ming balik ang BAHANDI. Why is Telly opposing the project when the late Judge Tony Uy supported her fight for the preservation of ancestral houses way back in 2024 and 2025? So? What is the connection? Funny and yet cruel. My cousin already passed on when that happened.

Secondly, I’m not Bahandi. Who fought for that cause before about the ancestral houses? We were a group of ancestral homeowners who fought — Gardy, Fr. Vic, Jojie, Nong Lali, and 11 other ancestral homeowners who joined us. We were fortunate to have the support of the Ayala Foundation, Metropolitan Museum of Manila and friends from the NHI and the NCCA. Prayers and determination brought us to where we are today.

This is not about personalities. This is about principle Mura man hino-on    ug tanan gihunaw sa SB kay gisugo lamang sa mayor. Dili si mayor gusto mangutang ug mohawa [sya sa pwesto] nga way utang. Of course, there was Ness who provided the think tank. And it was a fact that what we are sharing now are the feelings of those who were there, who verbalized what they were and are thinking.

Dili ta manghunaw sa atong mga kamot aning atong gihimo karon. Let’s not be Pontius Pilate in this endeavor. In the end, we are all for the best in our town and we believe that the message is in the sender.

So allow us to express freely and sincerely our feelings and our fears. As Tominongnons of this town, please make us feel that we have a soul and a heart for a better Baclayon.

The mercado as refuge

I have said my piece from the perspective of history, religion, social, cultural, political and economics. You might have noticed why I gave emphasis to the mercado as a refuge and shelter to the downtrodden.

When I was young, there was Gorio Bongoton and there was Jesus Otong. Jesus Otong could swim from the mainland to Pamilacan. The mercado was their shelter — not just a place to buy and sell, but a place to be safe.

Then, in the market I learned that my own sister Corazon slept under the big table with just a cardboard to cover the floor. Gipakaon siya sa taga mercado. And I contacted a carinderia for a credit line for her. One time, iyang gisipa ang sug-ang, kon ug kaang. When I paid, okay ra kuno. I have paid all the dues.

And what is most painful to me? Kanang ingon ba ka nga motoo man ka ni Telly nga kaliwat man na ug boang. Nagpasalamat sila nga wa silay boang. We are not hiding our boang issue. We accept our fate. Ug naa man ugaling utang ang akong mga igsoon, amo gyud seguro-on nga wala sila maghambin ug utang sa ilang lungon.

Why do I say this? Because the mercado taught me compassion. It taught me that development must have a face. The face of the poor, the hungry, the forgotten.

The mayor is one of the five anak sa bunyag in my whole life. I always keep to heart the responsibility of a maninay. And my way of caring is to show him the face of truth, of the people’s sentiment over the issue.

As soon as his term of office shall have ended, as maninay I want him to do the exit with a legacy of service: for the people, by the people, and of the people. It may not be perfect, but at least he tried and I helped him in doing his best.

I repeat, this is not about being anti-development. This is about making sure development never forgets whose home it is developing for.