2010 presidential hopefuls in Ati-atihan
KALIBO, AKLAN—Not missing a beat, presidential hopefuls joined revelers of the this year's Ati-festival which ended Sunday.
Senators Manuel “Mar” Roxas and Manuel Villar briefly joined thousands of revelers in the “sad-sad,” the street-dancing to the drum-beatings and tunes of lyres which the festival is famous for.
Roxas joined the street-dancing on Saturday after speaking in a forum and meeting with Aklan leaders.
The following day, Villar also joined the street-dancing at the Pastrana Park, the town's public plaza. But fans with his trademark orange colors and picture already were circulated since Saturday.
Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero, another official being touted as a presidential candidate in the 2010 elections, arrived on Friday and was interviewed by radio stations.
Those who were unable to came posted streamers including Senators Richard “Dick” Gordon and Rodolfo Biazon.
Militant groups led by the Aklan chapter of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan also joined the street dancing without placards but with flags and a streamer on various social and political issues.
But “President-Elect Barack Obama” was also there. A giant dark brown paper mache image of the United States president won second place in the festival's “Higante Parade.”
Along with Ati-Atihan tribes competing for best costumes and dancing, some residents and tourists dressed up from the political to the ridiculous and outrageous.
These included snake-skinned dancers, “Manny Pacquiao” and an elderly man with in a hospital gown and carrying a dextrose bottle. A man donned mud all over his body to remind revelers of typhoon “Frank” which covered the town with mudflow for weeks.
A man dressed as “Resikolo Mariposa (Recycle Butterfly) was an instant hit for wearing a butterfly-like costume made from plastic bottles, tin cans and bottle caps and calling for waster segregation and recycling to battle global warming and climate change.