MANILA, 31 October 2003 — The long wait is finally over.
No less than President Arroyo opened the 2003 Palarong Pambansa that was thrice-postponed due to the peace and order situation in Tubod, Lanao del Norte.
Over 7,000 athletes and officials representing 14 of the country’s 17 regions are seeing action in the Palaro, traditionally the breeding ground of future national athletes.
President Arroyo, drenched by a sudden downpour, urged participants to use the Palarong Pambansa as one of the tools in their rebuilding and peace process.
“This edition of the games is a tribute to all of you out there. I hope you will seek teamwork and fair play not only in sports but also in your lives,” said the president. “Let us be one team for the Republic of the Philippines. Let the Palarong Pambansa serve as one of the tools in unity, cooperation and reconciliation.”
She urged the participants to observe fair play and team work in her 15-minute keynote speech before a crowd of 20,000 at the Mindanao Civic Center.
“Sports transcends religions, beliefs, culture and language, I hope we can use this to overcome divisions in our life,” said President Arroyo, who was criticized in the past for her apparent apathy toward the sporting community.
Clad in simple white blouse and black pants, President Arroyo also praised the organizers for exerting their efforts to stage the games despite three postponements.
“This is a tribute to all of you youths out there,” said the president, who exhorted the athletes to follow the footsteps of renowned Palaro discoveries, among them Lydia de Vega-Mercado, Elma Muros-Posadas and Isidro del Prado.
Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman and organizing committee head Eric Buhain said the staging of the Palaro in Tubod is a victory not only for the people of Mindanao but also the country as a whole.
Buhain said he’d been assured by the Dimaporos regarding the safe and smooth conduct of the Palaro.
Actually, the Palaro kicked off a day after the Mindanao Games, which enormously helped ease apprehensions over Mindanao with 4,000 athletes and officials from 42 local government units in attendance, successfully wrapped up its third edition in the humble yet potential coastal municipality of Mati down south of the island in Davao Oriental.
Tubod, a municipality in the island of Lanao del Norte that endured three years and three postponements this year, will be finally thrust into the limelight by hosting a sportsfest that is truly grassroots and developmental. The opening of the Palaro in Tubod is a victory for the people of this hilly province headed by the dynamic husband and wife pair of Lanao del Norte Gov. Imelda Quibranza-Dimaporo and Congressman Abdullah “Bobby” Dimaporo.
Rep. Dimaporo, for his part, thanked the president for her unwavering commitment to the staging of the event in Lanao del Norte and lauded the Armed Forces and the National Police for providing the needed security of all participating delegations.
The Dimaporos fought, and even begged, that the Palarong Pambansa be finally staged in Lanao del Norte as promised 11 years ago.
As a matter of fact, they went all out for the trouble-free and smooth opening of the Games along with a promise that this year’s Palarong Pambansa will be one of the most memorable and successful editions.
