July 15 Declared As A Special Non-Working Holiday In The Cordillera Region

The Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) will be celebrating its 29th foundation day this coming July 15 (Friday). In order to give the people of the region the chance to participate in ceremonies and events that observe the occasion, the Duterte administration has declared the date as a special non-working holiday for all six provinces in the region. Malacanang made the declaration through Proclamation No. 08 saying, "it is but fitting and proper that the people of CAR be given full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the occasion with appropriate ceremonies."

This year's celebrations carry the theme "CAR @ 29: Working Together For An Autonomous And Empowered Cordillera". The events kicked off with a media forum held last June 29 in Baguio City. A parade will be held in July 15 culminating with a program at the Baguio Convention Center. The Unity Gong Relay, which became a part of the annual celebrations, also started in July 9. The symbolic gong will travel from Baguio City, to Lagawe, Tabuk, Luna, Bangued, Bontoc, La Trinidad, and back to Baguio City. A ceremonial tree planting activity will be held at each stop.

The Cordillera Administrative Region was officially created on July 15, 1987 when then Philippine President Corazon Aquino issued Executive Order 220. The order separated Abra, Benguet and Mountain Province from the Ilocos region and Ifugao and Kalinga-Apayao from the Cagayan Valley to create a new administrative region. Kalinga-Apayao remained as one province until they were split in 1995 through the enactment of Republic Act No. 7878.

CAR now has 6 provinces, 2 cities, and 75 municipalities. The latest census (2010) put the region's population at 1,616,867.

Photo by Daniel Feliciano/The Cordilleran Sun

Jack Dulnuan, The Founder Of Jack's Restaurant Has Passed Away At 81

The province of Benguet (or the whole of Cordillera for that matter) has lost an icon of the local entrepreneurship scene. Jack Dulnuan, the founder of Jack's Restaurant, has been confirmed to have passed away. He was 81 years old. Dulnuan's rise to prominence can be aptly described as a rags-to-riches story. In his early years, he took on odd jobs like working as a houseboy and a delivery boy in Baguio City. With perseverance and a penchant for saving his money, he slowly turned his life around by engaging in various business ventures. But his most well-known contribution to the Cordilleran community is his line of diner-type establishments popularly known as Jack's Restaurant.

Dining in a Jack's Restaurant is now snugly embedded into the evolving cultures of Baguio City and La Trinidad. Almost everyone now knows what a Jack's Rice is. If queried, a Baguio person can confidently recite the contents of a Jack's Rice meal: the rice, the pork lechon, the fried egg, the fried chicken, and the vegetables. Aside from offering good meals at very affordable prices, Jack's Restaurant has also succeeded in making itself stand out from the crowded dining scene in Baguio City. Loyalty within the ranks of its customers has allowed the restaurant to expand and open branches of the restaurant in almost every major street corner of the city.

Dulnuan also dabbled in politics. He served as a Board Member in the province of Benguet. During his tenure, whenever he had the chance, he always tried to instill the importance of saving and smart entrepreneurship among his constituents. During a public assembly in La Trinidad sometime in 2014, he had this to say to the crowd: "I have solved my poverty. It's because I learned to save."

Image credit: Benguet General Hospital

Dulnuan ran for Governor in the recently concluded national elections. Unfortunately for the businessman-turned-politician, he ended up getting the least votes among the five candidates. The independent candidate Cresencio Pacalso took home the bacon, garnering at least 40% of the votes.