CEBU -- Nobody would think it was a Sunday here yesterday with motorists and public utility vehicles battling for spaces at city downtown to avoid road blocks put up for the tour of ASEAN leaders' spouses while 10 state leaders continue to deliberate on various concerns at their summit meetings which end today.

"We are losing much because of the Summit," a taxi driver told the DAILY STAR while pushing his way to get out of heavy traffic at Osmeña Boulevard which, he said is rather virtually empty on a Sunday.

The City Traffic Operations Management had asked the drivers to bear with heavy traffic which motorists assessed was worse than that in December when the summit was called off due to typhoon "Seniang."

Junctures leading to N. Bacalso and Leon Kilat streets here were also filled with vehicles who tried to avoid but failed the security convoys of the tour participants.

The tour started at Talamban to Cebu Capitol Area, Fuente Osmeña and Colon Streeets, and ended at the Magellan's Cross in Lapu-Lapu City. At Juan Luna Streets, they were welcomed by high schoolers lined up on the streets showcasing various Chinese dances.

Security was also even more tight but the traffic policemen seemed inutile to contain traffic, some of them giving conflicting directions to drivers, worsening congestion. Added to this were scores of protesters pushing themselves near the Cebu International Convention Center, the principal summit venue.

Leaders of the ASEAN's dialog partners entered into agreements for cooperation and amity.

These included the pact on the Trade in Services Agreement of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area; Plan of Action to Implement the Beijing Declaration on ASEAN-Information and Communications Cooperative Partnership for Common Development; Memorandum of Agreement between ASEAN Secretariat and the Ministry of People's Republic of China on Agricultural Cooperation.

Korea's head of state, along with their counterparts from Japan and China also held meetings at Shangri-La Mactan.

Meanwhile, also set here at 8 last night was a gala dinner hosted by President Gloria Arroyo and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo in honor of the heads of state and government and their spouses.

Among the performers are Cebuana divas Ina Morales who will sing in Malaysian the famous "Anak" piece of Freddie Aguilar, and Sheryn Regis in Japanese, and Riza Ravales; Lea Salonga who will perform with the Mandaue Children's Choir and the Cebu Philharmonic

Orchestra for the Broadway numbers and the "Tagumpay Nating Lahat" song; Cebu orchestra with pianist Gerald Salonga; and Bakanon Tribal group.

Renowned designer Pitory Moreno was set to stage a fashion show of clothes using indigenous materials with inspirations from the national costumes of participting countries, and a performance from the Cebu Dance Ensemble with RJ Jacinto with his ASEAN theme song.*GCT

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