After acquiring The Pavilion, the beautiful and functional official venue for the 51st International Eucharistic Congress (IEC), the Archdiocese of Cebu can still lay claim to another position of ascendancy among all other countries that hosted the IEC over the last 130 years.
This was revealed by Monsignor Joseph Tan, spokesman of the Cebu Archdiocese and executive assistant of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) department of Social Communication, during last Saturday’s turnover rites of The Pavilion from Duros Development Corporation to the local archdiocese.
“Another first in the preparation is that the IEC in Cebu City will be the first to broadcast the event on its own via satellite,” Monsignor Tan told this corner.
This will happen through the facilities of Radio TV Malacanang RTVM which will “provide the back end and front end of the IEC coverage requirements” of the Catholic Congress, said Monsignor Tan.
RTVM has given its commitment to lend its satellite facilities, broadcast equipment like cameras, OB vans, including technicians, drivers and crew members for free during the entire week of the IEC.
The CBCP, the national host of the IEC through the local host that is the Cebu Archdiocese, need not negotiate with commercial television networks for coverage and airtime because RTVM, which is under the Office of the President, has committed to place its facilities at the disposal of this global Catholic event from Jan. 24 to 31, 2016.
All told, commercial broadcast networks will simply have to tap the clean feeds of RTVM if they need IEC updates, according to the spokesman of the Archdiocese. Or if commercial stations want a running coverage, they can tap the satellite parameters of RTVM.
Monsignor Tan said this development came about with the help of Monsignor Pedro “Pepe” Quitorio, CBCP Media Office director who acted as consultant for RTVM during the visit of Pope Francis in January this year. Together with EWTN Executive for Asia Edwin Lopez, they tapped friend-contacts in the Presidential Communications Operations Office which has authority over the state communications arm. The PCOO’s favorable response came only last month, Monsignor Tan said.
PCOO Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. will have a leaner TV backup during the entire IEC days, but then again, there’s the state radio facilities, the Philippine Broadcast System or PBS which provides audio documentation of the President’s official functions and activities.
Monsignor Tan acts as executive assistant of Bishop Mylo Vergara of the Diocese of Pasig who heads the Department of Social Communications of the CBCP. As the go-to guy for information and media requests, Monsignor Tan can likewise rightfully brag about a media center for the 51st IEC to be located in the 2nd floor of The Pavilion. The media center to be designed by Oak Ridge will have an independent air conditioning system.
I think the developments are all very positive because many people overseas and even in our country would like to visit Cebu and participate in the IEC. But many cannot afford the cost of travel and accommodation not to mention the registration fees.
Monsignor Tan said the broadcast feeds that the CBCP and the Cebu Archdiocese are working on will provide the connectivity to all corners of the world. Indeed, virtual participation for Catholic devotees worldwide is assured through live streaming in the webpage of several media partners.
Up until two months ago, Monsignor Tan was tending to the repair of the College Seminary, which his office thought would suffice for a media center. And then last month, the great news of the RTVM’s commitment as the IEC’s main broadcast carrier, plus many other services offered free by individuals and telecom institutions.
“Suddenly, we’re high tech,” a grinning Monsignor Tan told this corner.
Asked about the overall status of preparations for the global Catholic event, Monsignor Tan said the answer can be found in the state of The Pavilion.
“It has been accomplished, but some finishing touches have to be made to make it fully complete. That is how the preparations are going at this time.”
We are almost there, according to Monsignor Tan.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
