by: Telly G. Ocampo 

The school building in the mangrove forest along the highway

I was in the mangrove forest on October 30, 2023, election day,
because it is in this forest where the building of my voting
precinct is located. Even if my residence is now at Taguihon,
Baclayon, Bohol, yet, I have remained a voter in the Poblacion
of my hometown. As I said, my voting precinct happened to be
in the new school building in the mangrove forest along the
highway.
This school building was constructed after the 7.2 earthquake
that struck the province in 2013. The church and the bell tower
including the belfry, were heavily damaged by the strong
tremors and passing thru the national highway was no longer
possible. So before the construction of the school building, part
of the road (along the highway) was moved back towards the
seashore. The provincial road has now become a national road
and the roads leading to the towns belonging to the old
Baclayon, Corella, Albur, Sikatuna, Catigbian, Balilihan towns
are now smooth. Lusot-lusot na gyud ug dili na kuyaw sa
mga sumasakay ug lumlakaway. Dili na muagi sa dakbayan
sa Tagbilaran. Basta, hanoy na kaajo.
It is nice to realize that the new school building, more or less, is
blending with the architecture of the Baclayon Church. Getting
inside the classroom of the new school building gives you a
feeling of ease and comfort. Hayahay kaayo ang pamati sa
dughan. It is designed for cross ventilation. Behind the
structure is what we happily call as the thick mangrove forest.

The foresight of UCPB who funded the mangrove planting
project is worth the mention. That was in the mid 1980s. Who
would think, then, that a school building would be constructed
in its midst – the mangrove forest. The learners and teachers
assigned to these classrooms are very fortunate.
Balik ta sa eleksyon. Muabot gyud diay ang panahon no
nga mubati tau g somo sa opisyales nga ga inandes ug
inamboy. In our dialect, inandes ug inamboy means the act
of being repetitive. Kanang gitawag bitaw ug balikbalik.
Another term for somo is pu-ol. Maybe, some of our voters are
already feeling the somo and the pu-ol because candidates
are practicing the inandes ug inamboy nga gabalikbalik sa
position.
Take as an example our Poblacion. Though our punong
barangay captain is retained, only one among the “old
councilmen (kagawad) made it to victory. Usa ra gyud ang
milusot. And to think that this person nga milusot ran as an
independent candidate. Gipul-an na gyud tingali ang mga
tawo noh? Naa gyud diay kinutoban sa kahumot sa usa ka
opisyal. Ug ako? Unsay akong gibati? I am happy with the
results of the election in our Poblacion. Mor pa!
Going to the new school building, please note that you have to
pass thru the Poblacion barangay hall. Once there, you will see
its back beauty. If only the previous officials used their
imagination. Nindot unta pud kung ang design sa barangay
hall dunay pagka classic.
I’m an alumna of Baclayon Central Elementary School. As one,
I am more than eager to help in doing a facelift of the
surroundings of the school, especially that portion in front of the
building. Dawaton ba kaha sa school administration ang
among tanyag nga motabang mi (mga alumni) sa pagpa-
anyag sa atubangan nga dapit sa maong school building?
If given the go signal, I will really campaign for donations of

pots of bougainvillea from the alumni. And let’s plant
kalachuchi and talisay, too. Let’s name our campaign: a
kaleidoscope of colors for Baclayon. I still remember the
campaign we had with Nong Ite Mendez years back: pisopiso
para sa greening in 1995 for the celebration of 400 years of
Christianity in Baclayon. And that project was adopted by the
Baclayon Central Elementary School with Mrs. Gardenia Jayag
Uy as the principal.
Any takers?