Bird flu threat fails to dampen festival in Kalinga

Despite the continued threat of the spread of the bird flu virus, officials of Rizal town in Kalinga have reserved 2,000 ducks for the town’s annual Pinikpikan festival. Sun-Star Baguio (www.sunstar.com.ph) reported Friday that Rizal mayor Marcel dela Cruz said the festival could help boost the town’s agro-industrial and eco-tourism industries. “This is meant to promote Rizal’s backyard industry-duck raising," dela Cruz said when asked why the town reserved ducks instead of the traditional chickens. But in nearby Baguio City, the city council has passed an avian flu ordinance that allows the stockpiling of vaccines against avian influenza. The ordinance also provides the creating of a monitoring team that will respond to avian flu cases in the city. Scheduled on March 24 and 25, the festival’s highlight is the simultaneous preparation and cooking of the pinikpikan, street dancing and cultural performance parade, and agro-industrial and eco-tourism fair. Pinikpikan is a Cordilleran delicacy cooked by slowly beating a chicken to death, pulling out its feathers, and burning the chicken using an open fire or a blowtorch. The chicken is prepared like tinola or chicken stew, and the coagulated blood supposedly adding a distinct taste to this dish. On the other hand, the provincial government Mountain Province is already preparing for the annual Lang-ay Festival next month. Like organizers of the Panagbenga Flower Festival, Mountain Province Governor Maximo Dalog said campaigning during the street dancing parade would also be prohibited. Dalog said candidates will not be barred from attending the festival but stressed that the street dancing would be limited to a showcase of the province’s culture only. - GMANews.TV