New year welcomed tonight
More subdued celebration seen in view of calamities
By BRENDA PIQUERO TUAZON
Families gather all over RP tonight for ‘media noche’
A subdued celebration to welcome the New Year at midnight tonight is expected among Filipinos in the face of the devastation suffered by fellow Asians from the worst earthquake in living memory and the tidal waves that it sent crashing into coastlines around the Indian Ocean.
There will be the usual burst of firecrackers and fireworks to welcome the arrival of the New Year, officials said, but it is expected not to be as noisy as it used to be.
For aside from the continuously rising death toll from the tidal waves in several countries, the Philippines only recently suffered over a thousand deaths from a series of typhoons and tropical storms that lashed the eastern part of the country.
No midnight masses will be held in many churches tonight, a practice which Catholic priests said began a few years ago to safeguard the lives and limbs of devotees amid the din of firecracker explosions.
Instead, New Year’s Eve masses will be held in churches hours before the initial burst of firecrackers. For Catholics, New Year’s Day is a holy day of obligation.
As part of the New Year’s Eve revelry, Filipinos will again gather in homes for family reunions around tables filled with holiday fare and fruits.
Filipino family traditions and superstitious beliefs will be the order of the day throughout the country to ensure a prosperous and healthy year ahead.
To keep themselves awake till midnight, families listen to blaring disco or rock music, or watch TV news yearenders or old movies.
It is said that wearing red polka-dotted clothes at midnight for the "media noche" (midnight repast) will bring good luck ,while children will be encouraged to stay awake until the early morning hours for their elders to lead long, healthy lives.
Homes will hang grapes in every corner or by the windows or behind doors for good luck.
For long life, families will partake of spaghetti, macaroni, or pancit bihon or canton (noodle) on the dining table and clink glasses of champagne or red wine.
Families also believe that partaking of sweet, round fruits at the stroke of midnight brings a promise of a sweet and happy life in the New Year. Families eat at least 12 grapes or 12 apples or oranges at "media noche" for good fortune every month of the New Year.
In many homes awaiting the arrival of the New Year, knives and pointed objects will be kept away before midnight tonight in the belief that this will keep away physical harm from members of the family throughout the year.
Tomorrow, New Year’s Day, sweeping the floor will be discouraged in many homes because it is believed that the use of the broom may sweep away the good fortunes that poured on New Year’s Eve.
It is also a time to visit ailing and aging relatives, a time to go home to ancestral homes.
Even with the anticipated somber tone, tonight’s celebration of New Year’s Eve will still be a joyful occasion among families to hail the promise of better fortunes that every New Year brings.
Arroyo looks forward to a better year
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo yesterday said she looks forward to the advent of 2005 as a "year of urgent change" for all and for the government, notably in pushing for revenue measures needed to bail the country out of a slump.
The President issued the statement as a preNew Year’s message in an apparent attempt to psyche up the Filipino people to accept the "bitter pills" of the highly-unpopular revenue-mobilization measures she wanted to be passed into law next year.
"We must look forward now to 2005 as a year of urgent change. Because we need a year of urgent change, what we will do is (that) we will have to improve our tax collections," she told local media during a brief press conference in Nueva Vizcaya.
On the fourth day of her out-of-town provincial trip, Arroyo went to Nueva Vizcaya to inspect and talk with the families displaced by landslides and floods from the series of typhoons that hit the country.
She described the exiting year 2004 as a "year of triumph and tragedy," in curt reference to the recent typhoons that devastated the mountainous region of Quezon where illegal logging operations are said to be rampant.
She asked Congress to cut short its Christmas break so its members can attend the three-day special session she called to rush the passage of the Lateral Attrition Bill and other revenue-related measures.
"I thank Congress for agreeing to end their vacation early so that they can have special session to pass the tax measures that we need," she said of the special session scheduled from Jan. 5 to 7. (Ferdie J. Maglalang)
Authorities brace for the New Year’s celebration
The Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Bureau of Fire Protection and the Department of Health together with local government units are completely prepared and in "full alert" as the nation welcomes the year 2005 tonight.
PNP chief Dir. Gen. Edgar Aglipay directed National Capital Regional Office chief Dir. Avelino Razon Jr. to double all efforts to prevent any untoward incidents during the festivities.
Yesterday, Razon formed the "rail police" to be posted in various LRT and MRT stations in Metro Manila.
AFP chief of staff Gen. Efren Abu alerted practically all units since, aside from policemen, soldiers were among those guilty of indiscriminately firing their guns during the celebration.
Dismissal through summary proceedings will be faced by violators who belong to the PNP and the AFP. The Articles of War and the Revised Penal Code will apply "on these hard-headed men in uniform," according to Abu and Aglipay.
In order to facilitate prompt actions on complaints against illegal firing of guns, Interior and Local Government Secretary Angelo Reyes and Undersecretary Melchor Rosales said the number of telephone operators or personnel manning the "Dial 117" police quick/emergency response call lines will be increased.
The BFP headed by Supt. Rogelio Asignado alerted all regional BFP heads, as well provincial, city and even municipal fire stations, to be prepared as "the biggest number of fire incidents in the country occurred on New Year’s eve.
The Inter-Agency Anti-Arson Task Force headed by Insp. Fennimore Jaudian, together with NCR-BFP chief Danilo Cabrera and all district heads and the Filipino-Chinese volunteer fire brigades, have teamed up for a "zero death" New Year’s celebration. (Yul Malicse)
Lawmen warn: No burning of tires
Las Pinas lawmen strongly warned residents of burning tires on the streets and other flammable materials to celebrate the New Year would be arested and jailed.
This was the stern warning of Las Pinas city police chief, Senior Supt. Pete Sanson yesterday. Sanson advised New Year revelers to refrain from engaging in the practice. Earlier, Las Pinas City Mayor Imelda Aguilar branded the practice of burning tires in the middle of streets as an environmental and fire hazard.
The mayor stressed that the noxious fumes caused by burning tires pose a health and safety hazard and could cause fire and accidents. She said that there are safer ways of celebrating the New Year.
Sanson ans top fire officials in Las Pinas urged the city residents to refrain from exploding firecrackers and other dangerous and prohibited pyrotechnics to prevent accidents and injuries. (Vic Vega)