The Heritage Conservation Society

By John L. Silva
July 2005

My story has a distressing beginning but a happy ending and lessons for us advocates of heritage preservation.

Visitors to the town of Pila, Laguna are amazed at its well preserved state.  Dating back to 900 AD and founded by the Spaniards over 400 years ago, Pila retains its plaza with age-old trees, a gracious church and convent, an American period town hall building, and large stone houses around the square.  Pila is cited and studied by historians from around the world as one of the few intact examples of Spanish colonial town planning.

There’s a museum with artifacts from a nearby archaeological site and one section of the plaza still has a free-flowing fountain. Tomas Pinpin printed the first Tagalog dictionary in Pila in 1613.   

The Pila Historical Society Foundation with its current President Monina Rivera and its treasurer Cora Relova have over the years, been tireless in showing off this picturesque town to many local and foreign tourists.   Five years ago, Cora secured National Historical Landmark status for the town from the National Historical Institute giving it a well-deserved distinction as well as safeguarding its pristine state.  With that status, Cora was able to further improve the town and stop a yearly fair from camping on the plaza and transforming the place into a garbage and fecal dump.

In late July, Cora called, quite upset and angry.  Globe had posted over forty banners of their ad materials on every lamp post on the plaza, and more banners on the main road leading to it, and on the national highway nearing the town.  It was an advertising blitz from hell.

I drove over to Pila and in the pouring rain, saw the ad carnage that Globe had so insensitively done to the town.  The pretty plaza was ruined aesthetically, the gracious old houses marred, and with rain making the banners sag, the once delightful town was transformed into a disgusting hovel.

Cora and I strategized how to have the posters immediately removed.  First, we reviewed all the write-ups about the town so as to make a case that this was a heritage and tourist site.  Second, we searched for allies in our address books who can get to the decision makers in Globe.

A stalwart Pila supporter and former Ayala Museum Director Sonia Ner, gave us a name in the marketing department.  We called, the person was abroad and could help out after the weekend. 

Cora and I couldn’t wait for a weekend.  The offending banners were up, the town had become a tourist pariah, and Globe was destroying the town’s image.

I resorted to Plan B, an all out media broadside against Globe when Cora remembered another Pila supporter.  Bea Zobel Jr. had written about the town in the Inquirer Lifestyle section and applauded its beauty.  With a few text messages, Cora got to Bea and Bea immediately came to the rescue.  An hour later, Archie Monzon of Globe’s corporate marketing department called and the offending posters were removed the next morning, six days after they were put up.

When I shared the happy news to friends, Maribel Ongpin, another heritage stalwart asked “What if there was no Bea?” She added “Don’t you think Globe would be intelligent enough not to mar a heritage site?”

And so, here are the lessons I am sharing for us as well as for Globe in the continuous battle to keep our country beautiful:
1. Heritage sites play an important role in remembering our past as well as generate much needed tourism revenue.  They must be off limits to commercial advertising that ruin their charm and drive away tourists.
2. Action, and well planned at that, is better than whining.  Cora picked up the phone, did her texting, e-mailed, threatened, cajoled, and found “The Tipping Point” in Bea Zobel. Cora fought not to get sympathy, but results.
3. Globe needs a course on heritage conservation.  Why should the onus always be on the Heritage Conservation Society to point out the damage done by rapacious advertising?  They must have at least one enlightened heritage advocate in their midst.  If not, the Society is ready to teach Globe. 

Last year, I successfully got Globe and Smart not to post their banners on trees ever again.  They have, despite a few indiscretions, complied with that agreement.  And the country looks a little cleaner and more charming. 

I have also noted that after a year of no more advertising posted on trees, that both cell phone companies continued reaping profits.  It would be reasonable to deduce that both companies can stop all advertising banners and posters on lamp posts and electric posts and, perhaps, even billboards with no profit loss.  If Globe instead had sponsored a tourism project of Pila Historical Society instead of littering the town with cancer-causing tarpaulins, would there be more tourists, more jobs, more Globe subscribers?  It’s a no-brainer.

Heritage sites are primary tourism destinations in Thailand (11 million tourists a year), Singapore (7 million), and Malaysia’s (10 million).  You do not see advertising banners marring their temples, churches, towns and old houses.  I am convinced if we do the same, the measly two million tourist arrivals we get each year will increase substantially as visitors will finally see and revel in our heritage sites like that of quaint and gorgeous Pila, Laguna.

John L. Silva (jsilva79@hotmail.com) is a member of the Heritage Conservation Society.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 1st, 2005 at 7:36 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.