A Philippine Flag in the making
THE Independence Day celebration has given livelihood for flag makers and street vendors.
In sitio Waling-waling, Barangay Opao, Mandaue City, flag makers earn P1,300 daily by selling flaglets in the streets. One of them is Librada Canoy who has been making flaglets for four years already.
She usually starts making them a month before the celebration. She spends P1,300 for 1,100 pieces of flaglets which she sells at P20 a piece to motorists in the streets around Metro Cebu.
Canoy taps her neighbors to help her produce 50-300 pieces of flaglets a day. They start selling them on the last week of May.
Elpedio Batulan, 65, is Canoy’s trusted sewer. She pays Batulan P350 for every 100 pieces of flaglets he sews.
According to Batulan, he can finish 200 flaglets a day.
Batulan repairs and alters garments for a living. But since he was tapped by Canoy to make flaglets, he no longer accepts repairs and alterations every month of May until the first week of June.
According to him, he earns P700 everyday, more than what he earns in his usual work.
“I’m really looking forward every year for Independence Day because I get to earn more for my family. Sometimes, I wish that motorists are really obliged to put the Philippine flags in their vehicles all year long,” says Batulan.
After the blue, red, and white cloth are sewn together, the flaglets are then sent back to Canoy. She personally prints the stars and the sun on the flaglets.
“I use golden yellow textile ink in printing the three stars and the sun. I learn how to screen print from my father who started this business. I basically grew up with this kind of livelihood,” says Canoy.
Canoy also taps some of her neighbors for bamboo sticks, which are smoothened and cut to a length enough to be the flaglets’ handles.
Once the flaglets are printed, it will be dried for about four hours, before these are attached to the bamboo handles.
“Once the flaglets are ready, we tap bottled water vendors in the streets to sell the flaglets. We give them a percentage for every flaglets sold,” says Canoy.