Natl Holiday alters Sept Fest activities

illustration by Christian Deano Echague

by Alyssa Joana Aro and Jasmine Yao

In observance with the regular holiday on September kasi holiday.

BUeos reacted both positively and negatively with
25, the University Student Council (USC) has made
some changes in the calendar of activities for this the changes in the calendar of activities for this years September Festival.
years September Festival.
Okay lang naman [cancelation of activities] kasi puUnder Proclamation No. 1128 signed by President Benigno S. Aquino III, September 25 was declared as a regular
holiday nationwide in observance of Eidl Adha, also known
as Feast of Sacrifice, which is one of the greatest feasts of Islam.
With this, USC Chairperson and Student Regent Irene
Kayle Santillan said that changes on the schedule of the activities were made as per advised by the Office of Student
Services (OSS).

CANCELATION AND RESCHEDULING

USC has confirmed the cancelation of Rave Party and
Freeday Friday which were originally scheduled on September 25.
Santillan stated that they totally cancelled these events
because the council couldnt find another schedule for these
activities.
Its okay to cancel these activities kasi minor events
lang naman siya, she added.
Meanwhile, the awarding ceremony for this years September Festival was moved to September 24, on the coronation night of Mr. and Ms. Bicol University (BU) 2015.
The awarding ceremonies will be divided into two.
For the minor activities, awarding will be right after the competition. The overall winner and the ranking of the 16 colleges will be announced during the coronation night, she
added.
Moreover, Santillan said that she agrees with the OSS
decision of cancelling the events because this will affect the
majority of students.
Ang BU week kasi is not cancellation of classes. Its
just transfer of classes from the classroom to the outside.
Kung ganoong concept ang itatake natin, wala kang itatransfer

punta dito yung students for those activities [Rave Party and
Freeday Friday] lang, Mariella Isablle Melgar, secretary of
the College Student Council (CSC) of the College of Arts and
Letters said.
Also, Ma. Florentina A. Villar, a student from Tabaco
campus agreed with the decision of USC for it shows that the
university respects the celebration of Eidl Adha of Islams.
On the other hand, Monica Caure, also from TC, said
that shes disappointed with the cancellation.
Sayang kasi yung memories na pwedeng makuha sa
mga activities na yun, she further said.
BU OLYMPICS still on fire
Despite the declaration of Eidl Adha as a regular holiday on September 25, 2015, BU Olympics will still be pushed
through up to the end of the 46th Founding Anniversary celebration.
According to Prof. Ma. Merlie R. Arbo, Dean of OSS,
BU Olympics will still be pushed and the overall champion
will be announced on the coronation night for Mr. and Ms.
BU.
Dr. Celerino Palacio, University Sports Coordinator,
stressed that BU Olympics will not be postponed since theres
an instruction coming from BU President Arnulfo Mascarias.
Tuloy ang games [BU Olympics] hindi natin ito pwedeng ipostpone kasi gagastos nanaman tayo, he said.

On the other hand, Santillan reiterated that USC
never facilitated any sports activity in line with the BU Olympics.

Sports activities are handled by the university sports
coordinator and his team.

MY ISKO, YOUR ISKO! Bicol University proudly presented its very first official mascot, Isko , during the opening of the
Pep Squad Competition yesterday. Photo by Shan Gabriel M. Apuli

Pep Squad-related accidents increase

Were ready to treat injuries- BU Clinic

by Shan Gabriel M. Apuli

Despite the increasing number of reported injuries

days before the celebration of the 46th Founding Anniversary of Bicol University (BU), the BU Main Clinic
insisted that they are actually ready for the possible
surge of injury cases.

the players during BU week were not athletic. Some were just
forced to join resulting to incidents like this. Actually, we have
this report weeks ago about a soccer-related injury from CAL
[College of Arts and Letters]. He did not wear the right soccer
shoes resulting to broken femur, Abainza stated.

The BU clinic also said that they instructed the coaches

Dr. Julio M. Abainza, medical officer IV of the BU Main and advisers of the competitors about the importance of safeClinic, said that they have done early preparations months be- ty before and during the events of BU week.
fore the conduct of the BU week. Our transports are ready;
We also guide the coaches, instructors, and advisers of
our medical kits are all ready. Weve communicated with the
the injured students and non-injured students. As their head,
heads and we have anticipated it [injuries], Abainza said.
they are the ones responsible for their safety aside from the
Injury reports from the different colleges in the univer- university itself.
sity include minor laceration to major injuries like fracture
The medical officer also added that there are more acciand sprains.
dents during the practice of the athletes before the BU Week,
Abainza points the lack of discipline of the competi- but these accidents occurred outside the university.
tors as a factor for the increasing number of injuries. Some of

IPESR breaks
CBEMs Pep
Squad winning
chain
by Ivy C. Cuebillas

Two years after the comeback of the Institute

of Physical Education, Sports and Recreation
(IPESR) in the Pep Squad and Cheerleading
Competition, the institute bagged the championship title for these two events, breaking
the four-year winning chain of the College of
Business, Economics and Management.

Included in the top five spots for the Pep
Squad Competition are the College of Education
which notched the second place, CBEM on third,
Tabaco Campus (TC) on fourth, and the Institute
of Architecture on fifth.

Meanwhile, College of Science, Gubat
Campus, TC, and Polangui Campus ranked second, third, fourth, and fifth, respectively, in the
Cheerleading Competition.

To avoid errors and conflicts between the
University Student Council and the College Student Councils (CSCs), Roberto Cardio, the executive head of the competition, decided to hold
the results.

Kasi po para if may mali sa mai-aanounce
namin, ma-troubleshoot namin kasi ang iniisip ko
po kung mag-aanounce kami tapos may mali pala
at pumunta sa amin yung CSC, eh magkakaroon
na naman ng issue, so kaya ko po hindi muna
ipina-announce para yung mailalabas naming na
information is tama, he said.

However, the council posted the results of
the competition on their official facebook page at
8:54 P.M. last night.

COMICS

by John Paul Revilla

Editorial
Buckled Up
In every event, organizers are expected to prioritize the welfare of the participants. Their lives must never be put into risk
just for the sake of winning.
This year, the Bicol University (BU)
administration along with the University
Student Council (USC) came up with a revised guideline in the Pep Squad Competition which included restrictions in stunts
and pyramid standing, originality of routines, and the removal of props.
The revision was made because of the
increasing number of Pep Squad-related
accidents for the previous months. In the
data recorded by the BU Main Clinic, two
students from the College of Arts and Letters suffered major injuries before the BU
Week. Others suffered minor injuries.
With this situation at hand, a motion
was released by the administration stating
that this year might be the last Pep Squad
competition. This motion was then opposed
by the USC and other college student councils.

Pondering things, it can never be denied that the absence of the Pep Squad will
diminish the delight and enthusiasm of the
students since it is considered one of the
highlights of BU Week. However, it cannot
also be denied that if the administration and
the students themselves failed to do sufficient precautionary measures, students
safety will be compromised.
Indeed, Dr. Julio M. Abainza of BU
Main Clinic is right when he affirmed that
if the safety of the students will not be assured by their trainers and respective colleges, then the Pep Squad Competition
should be stopped.
Lets face the truth. Our university
clinic does not have enough facilities and
equipment which would cater the needs of
the students when such accidents happen.
With this, it is depressing to think that some
students even have the guts to practice secretly, without their parents permission, just
to make sure that nobody would be able to
copy their moves.
Adding insult to the injury, these students dont even have proper training in executing those breathtaking stunts. As a result, their safety is being sacrificed, which
then puts the blame on the administration.
Ultimately, the revision of the guidelines will not guarantee that there will be no
more accidents but if the students are conscious about their safety, then they will not
put themselves in utter jeopardy.

IPESR overpowers
CAL, 25-15, 25-17
by Jerald N. Talavera

Using sharp kills, booming shots and decisive moves, Bicol University Institute of Physical Education, Sports and
Recreation (BU-IPESR) bestowed its might as it swept BU
College of Arts and Letters (CAL), 25-15, 25-17, on the
third game of volleyball men held at BU grounds yesterday.
In the first sets opening play, IPESR started strong as Jed
Alemania executed his back to back spike that led them to a score
of 7-1.
CAL did not allow the domination of the opposing team
as Rommer Velasco answered with consecutive overhead serves
which cut the gap into 5 points, 10-5, still in favor of IPESR.
Amidst the heavy rainfall, better floor defense was generated by the leading team on the mid moment of the clash. Christian
Cervantes together with Mark Nolledo bequeathed their placing
techniques that continued the run against the other league.
CAL tried to control the domination as Patrick Faculnan
and Blaise Ilan built their two-handed blocks but was not enough
to hold the gap.
IPESR was like a roaring lion on the closing momentum of
the first part of the rivalry, as it showered booming shots with the
help of Alemania who pumped his devastating kills that caused a
continuous meltdown of the opponent. The domination of IPESR
could not be stopped and resulted to post the score, 25-15.
On the second set of the game, the wind direction quickly
changed as CAL established a big lead of 7 points, 8-1, as John
Potestad performed sharp backline shots and IPESR committed
service errors. Because of the scenario, Coach Patrick James Atun
of IPESR was prompted to call for a timeout to discuss a concrete
plan to be executed by his team.
After the call, IPESR started to heat up again as Edrian
Marquez and Alexander Bazar released their side to side wallops
which resulted in three times back-to-back dead lock, 12-12, 1313, 15-15.
The exchange lingered until Nodello found a hole on CALs
defense by releasing his hairpin shot that opened the gate for a
lead, 16-15.
IPESR renewed its force on the last momentum of the
game as Alemania delivered his blazing kills which totally broke
CALs defense.
The other team tried to cope with the growing lead but
failed to conform to the set standard of the dominating group.
The clash ended with a score of 25-17, which advanced the IPESR
to the next level of the competition.

The Bicol Universitarian

THE OFFICIAL STUDENT PUBLICATION OF BICOL UNIVERSITY

Editorial Board and Staff

A.Y. 2015-2016

Editor in Chief Joshua Caleb Pacleta Associate Editor

Jervy Anne Romero Managing Editor Bryan Del Castillo
Senior Editor Jessica Bechayda
Arts and Graphics Editor Nichole Baloloy
Online Content Editor Randall Matthew Lorayes
Copy Editor Arthessa Marie Ladoing

Writers Alyssa Joana Aro, Elyssa Kristine Ella, Gladys

Ebrada, Jerald Talavera, Keren Anne Bernadas,
Mark Colin Abliter,
Renzle Mae Miranda, Rojee Peninoy
Cartoonists Alexzander Lopez, Deano Christian Echague, John Paul Revilla
Photojournalist George Gio Brondial, Jan Marie Raquion, Shan Gabriel Apuli
Layout Artists Casandra Balala,
Edward Lustan
Public Relations Staff Christian Robert Roxas,
Ivy Cuebillas, Jasmine Yao, Joshua Mirabuna,
Marian Deuna, May Altavano
Technical Adviser Felipe Jose Peralta

The Bicol Universitarian

is located at the 2F MP bldg.,
BU Main Campus, Legazpi City