BACLAYON, Bohol – A town legislator has vowed to lead protest action against the plan of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to delist the centuries-old Baclayon Church, second to the oldest stone church in the country, from its nomination to the World Heritage Site. According to an advanced copy of his privilege speech, Baclayon, Bohol councilor Rosendo Guingguing has dubbed UNESCO's decision “unfair and unjustified,” saying the people of Baclayon and the people of Bohol in general deserve an explanation over the UN body's “drastic move” of removing Baclayon Church from the list of World Heritage Site. “Is it the fault of the people of Bohol that we were hit by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake?” Guingguing posed the question in his prepared speech. “We have suffered so much as a result of last year's earthquake. Why do we have to suffer another blow courtesy of UNESCO?”

Guingguing said that while the church's bell tower sustained substantial damage in the aftermath of the earthquake, “the physical structure of the church remains intact, thus, it should not be disqualified in UNESCO's listing.” The town councilor was reacting to a published report in a national daily which had quoted a report of UNESCO disclosing that centuries-old churches in Baclayon and Loboc towns in Bohol are facing the possibility of removal from UNESCO heritage listing. “For as long as the last stone of the church remains standing, the Baclayon Church will forever be a national treasure, a world heritage site, an ancient structure that symbolizes our centuries-old faith as it represents the bloods, sweats, and tears of our ancestor who built this church,” Guingguing said.

“A church may lie in ruins but the fact remains that it is centuries old and its history cannot be erased by any calamity unless, of course, if the church's entire structure is beyond recognition, or if none of its stone is left standing,” he explained. Guingguing has also called on Bohol officials led by Gov. Edgar M. Chatto and the officials of Baclayon and Loboc towns to draft a position paper asking UNESCO to reconsider its decision. “Losing Bohol churches in the heritage site list of UNESCO is tantamount to blaming us Boholanos for an earthquake that is beyond our control,” the councilor stressed. (MIKE ORTEGA LIGALIG)