Gov. Emilio Macias II may be moving a lot of earth, cement and wood to finish the Sidlakang Negros Tourism Village in time for the Buglasan Festival, but he will need more than human energy to stop the rains.

“One of my friends told me that she went to the Carmelites bringing a couple of dozen eggs to ask for the rain to stop,” Macias, Negros Oriental governor, said.

Although a Protestant in his religious beliefs, Macias apparently has nothing against bringing offerings of eggs to the Carmelite convent to ask them to pray for the success of the Buglasan Festival, which opened yesterday and will run until January 1, 2008 .

The rains have been preventing the workers from laying asphalt on the road. But the governor said that the mud should not be a cause for worry.

“The mud does not bother me. I hope it does not bother you guys,” Macias said.

The Buglasan Festival, he said, will still be the same festival that has been institutionalized in the province these last few years, except that it has permanent structures, and that it has been moved towards the end of the year to make it a three-in-one affair.

Aside from the Buglasan Festival, the province will also celebrate the Sayawit Festival and the 110th birthday of Negros Oriental on January 1, 2008 which will be marked with a fireworks show at the Rizal Boulevard on December 31.

Macias also said that while the three congressmen of Negros Oriental have been invited to the opening of the site, they are not directly involved in the preparations.

“I did not ask from them. I didn't want to involve other people in the preparation of the site so we don't have to blame other people later on.” He said that this festival is basically a “provincial thing.”

“Actually,” he added, “I was just forced to get into this in a sense that there was no time and budget. But I never prepare for failure.”

The governor also said he was happy over the participation of the province of Siquijor in the Buglasan Festival.

Siquijor, which used to be a sub-province of Negros Oriental until 1972, was a bailiwick of Macias' father, the late congressman Lamberto Macias.

Macias said he invited Siquijor to join the Buglasan after they invited him to speak during the Araw ng Siquijor last September 17, which was also the birthday of his late father.

The participation of the Province of Siquijor speaks about the bond of friendship that both provinces share.*AP

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