Former Cebu Metropolis Mayor Michael Rama is the general chairman of Buhing Kalbaryo 2025. | CDN Photograph/ Pia Piquero
CEBU CITY, Philippines — General chairman and former Cebu Metropolis mayor Michael Rama desires his title out of the highlight in future stagings of Buhing Kalbaryo.
He mentioned the decades-old Lenten road play ought to now not be related to him, however with the neighborhood that has saved the custom alive.
“Subsequent yr, I don’t need my title over there,” Rama advised reporters on April 18, shortly after the Good Friday reenactment.
“The phrase will probably be ‘we,’ not anymore Mike Rama. It’s about time nga what will probably be highlighting kay ‘we’ na, sila na. It must be ‘we’ — we together with you, the folks, and all,” he added.
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Rama, who has served because the occasion’s total chairman for years, mentioned the shift marks a brand new chapter for the grassroots manufacturing, which for practically three a long time has relied on volunteers and donations somewhat than authorities help.
“Lisod man gud kaayo ang Buhing Kalbaryo i-organize kung walay apil tanan, mao nga ‘we’ na. Basta mao na na. The idea subsequent yr will probably be ‘we,’” he mentioned.
Rama additionally mentioned he’ll regularly step away from the lead organizing position, trusting that his household and long-serving volunteers, lots of whom have been a part of the manufacturing for 28 years, will proceed to maintain the custom.
“I’ll be simply round. Naa naman si Mikel [Rama]. Langga [Malou Rama] already is aware of. My employees, lots of them, 28 years na pod sila nag-serve sa Buhing Kalbaryo,” he mentioned.
Now in its twenty eighth yr, Buhing Kalbaryo has grown into one in all Cebu Metropolis’s most deeply rooted Holy Week traditions. The annual road play dramatizes the Ardour, Crucifixion, and Loss of life of Jesus Christ, utilizing the internal streets of Barangays San Nicolas Correct, Calamba, and Guadalupe as its stage.
This yr’s reenactment as soon as once more drew massive crowds, as tons of of spectators lined the procession route to observe volunteer performers carry the ultimate hours of Christ to life, beneath the searing solar, with no curtain, no pay, and no skilled actors.
The manufacturing, Rama harassed, stays an all-volunteer effort.
“That is purely bayanihan. Zero ang help from the town,” Rama beforehand advised reporters.
“We don’t spend something from authorities funds. Every part is given — from supplies to meals — by the individuals who imagine on this custom,” he mentioned.
READ: The PASSION of Jesus Christ
First staged in 1997, Buhing Kalbaryo has endured as each a non secular expression and a grassroots initiative.
Organizers depend on non-public donations and the mixed efforts of 5 barangays — San Nicolas Correct, Calamba, Guadalupe, Sapangdaku, and Kalunasan — to cowl logistical wants, from stage props to costumes to meals for the forged.
Other than meals and requirements like shirts and sandals, forged members obtain no financial compensation.
“Kini silang mga forged, ang ilang madawat lang gyud pagkaon ug panabang. Mao ra gyud amongst ikasukli sa ilang pag-apil,” Rama mentioned.
For a lot of, participation in Buhing Kalbaryo has grow to be a private act of devotion, a household custom, and a non secular mission.
This yr’s manufacturing featured between 120 to 150 performers, barely fewer than in earlier years, however organizers imagine the 2025 version delivered a extra emotionally highly effective expertise, particularly with the introduction of a brand new ending.
“In 28 years, this would be the first time mausab ang ending sa Buhing Kalbaryo. If ma-touch inyong coronary heart sa opening, how way more sa ending,” mentioned creative director Almarie June Jacaban.
Rama additionally addressed criticisms that Buhing Kalbaryo is being politicized, particularly given its shut proximity to election seasons in earlier years.
“This has been occurring for 28 years. Unsa man, paundangon nila? It’s the folks. It’s them, mga bata,” Rama mentioned.
He dismissed accusations of political motive, asserting that his presence on the occasion has all the time been a part of his dedication to the neighborhood, whether or not or not he’s operating for public workplace.
“Naa gyud akong presensya — ma election pa or dili. Dili na kalikay ana. Pagbuhat unhappy na silag ing-ana aron constant pod sila. Oh, come on. Ato nalang na silang iampo,” he mentioned.
Rama additionally disregarded authorized questions raised over his involvement, saying he noticed no violations in his position as an organizer.
“Kanang kiha-kiha, apil man gyud na. Pero wala ko kasabot asa ko niviolate. Dili man ko actor diha, naa ba koy mga reduction nga gipang distribute? Katong naghunahuna ug violation, pag-ampo ra gud mo, pamalandong mo,” Rama mentioned.
Regardless of the challenges, each logistical and political, Rama stays constructive about the way forward for the occasion.
He mentioned his hope is for Buhing Kalbaryo to stay a logo of unity, religion, and grassroots collaboration in Cebu Metropolis, lengthy after his title fades from its organizing banner.
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