CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (MindaNews/10 November) -- This year, two of my aunts, my grandfather, and several people I know -- including a friend named Elson -- died one after the other, and life went on as usual in the bustling city of Cagayan de Oro.

But when businessmen organized passive resistance in October against the alleged “oppressive assessments” of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), a semblance of deathly emptiness descended on almost the entire metropolis. Even Limketket Center became as desolate as Greenhills Memorial Park.

A column by Ramon Tulfo described the event as “a first” in Philippine history. But this appears to have a precedent centuries ago. A book by Dr. Antonio J. Montalvan II narrated that before the Spaniards came to Mindanao, the animist community in Himologan -- now Huluga -- was reluctantly giving tributes to a Maguindanao ruler named Bwisan.

The sound of that name struck me as quite familiar, so in the Heritage Conservation Advocates egroup, I asked Montalvan if the root word of “buhis” and “buhisan” is “Bwisan”. He replied that he never thought of it, but yes, it could be.  Montalvan added that Bwisan was loathed for this practice.

The son of Bwisan, Sultan Kudarat, was “director of the BIR” when the first Spanish missionaries arrived in Himologan. The suffering of the people of Himologan under this regime was quite clear: Although they were giving taxes to the Maguindanao elite, they still had to fortify their settlement because they were constantly attacked.

In 1626, however, the Portuguese priest, Fr. Fray Agustin de San Pedro, who studied theology and military tactics in the University of Salamanca, came to Himologan and convinced the residents to transfer to Kalambagohan -- the area now occupied by Gaston Park, City Hall, and St. Augustine Cathedral.

Here, the migrants were converted to Christianity. Their new fortress was repeatedly attacked by Kudarat’s warriors, but it held on under the leadership of Fray Agustin. Years passed and this area developed into what is now the center of Cagayan de Oro.

On October 22, a coalition of Cagayan de Oro traders, exasperated by alleged “BIR harassment” made history by organizing “Sera Protesta” -- a simultaneous closure of stores and shops. A text message that circulated before this event claimed that the plan was supported by the Church.

Let me congratulate the coalition forces for this operation, because they appeared to have surpassed their goal. The plan was simply to oust BIR regional director Mustapha Gandarosa. Instead, Gandarosa claimed on TV that because of the protest, he was promoted to the position of chief of staff of the BIR commissioner in Manila. So, let me congratulate Gandarosa, too.

As of this writing, however, Gandarosa has remained in his post because the letter he received from the Finance Secretary does not state the date of his transfer.

What an unfortunate oversight. From articles I read about Gandarosa, he does have exceptional abilities. His tax collection technique is certifiably effective. So, his promotion should not be delayed. A businessman said that Gandarosa should even be assigned to an office higher than the BIR. If Gandarosa could be sent back to Saudi Arabia, where he used to work, that would be better. The World Bank would be nice, too, he said.

Meanwhile, the Mindanao Polytechnic State College (MPSC) might consider giving Gandarosa an honorary degree in public administration, partly to erase the bad image MPSC earned when it gave former mayor Vicente Y. Emano a doctorate degree in humanities, even though Emano destroyed a huge portion of Huluga -- a feat even our Maguindanao brothers failed to accomplish.

This would certainly help promote MPSC to the status of a university, a long dream of the Mindanao people who want to acquire university diplomas -- even though we know that in this country it’s still best to have political connections to get jobs, to get promoted, or to drive a bulldozr to a heritage site.

(MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. Elson T. Elizaga is secretary of the Heritage Conservation Advocates)

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