By Janice Lozano
Filipino BC has announced that it will once again host this year’s Lapu-Lapu Day celebration, in partnership with Latincouver. While the announcement is wrapped in the language of cultural pride and festivity, it has instead exposed a painful and unresolved reality: many victims connected to the recent tragedy are still suffering, still waiting, and still without clear answers.
For a significant portion of the Filipino community, this announcement does not inspire pride. It sparks anger, disappointment, and disbelief.
How can there be celebration when wounds remain open?
How can there be music and dancing when victims continue to struggle financially and emotionally?
How can unity be preached when accountability has yet to be demonstrated?
These are not rhetorical questions. They are urgent moral challenges.
Celebration Without Accountability Is Reckless
When a tragedy of this scale occurs, communities respond instinctively, with generosity, compassion, and trust. Donations are given in good faith, with the clear expectation that the funds will go directly toward helping victims who were profoundly and personally affected.
Once those funds are collected, the responsibility becomes absolute.
Transparency is not a courtesy. It is a duty.
When hundreds of thousands of dollars are raised, the public has every right to know how that money was used. If victims reportedly received only a few hundred dollars for basic necessities while the total amount raised remains unclear, questions are inevitable and justified. That is not negativity. That is accountability.
Attempting to frame these concerns as “attacks” or “disrespect” misses the point entirely. This is about stewardship of community trust.
“Sana bago mag-celebrate ulit, ayusin muna yung mga gusot at mga tanong tungkol sa mga donasyon para sa mga biktima.”
Before another celebration is planned, unresolved issues must be addressed. Before stages are built and performances scheduled, transparency must come first.
Silence Fuels Mistrust
The most responsible, and necessary, response to growing concern is a clear, detailed, and public accounting of the funds. This should include:
• The total amount of money raised
• The exact amount distributed
• How assistance was provided, while respecting privacy
• Any administrative or operational expenses
• A clear plan and timeline for remaining funds
Anything less invites speculation. Silence does not protect organizations, it undermines them. Even if no wrongdoing occurred, the absence of transparency erodes confidence and deepens division.
Why This Moment Matters
This issue is especially critical now, as Filipino BC moves forward with Lapu-Lapu Day and likely future fundraising efforts, including initiatives tied to a Filipino Cultural Centre.
If the community will be asked to donate in the future, whether for celebrations, infrastructure, or future emergencies, then trust must be firmly established. Trust is not automatic. It is earned. And once shaken, it cannot be restored through celebration alone.
Culture Without Conscience Is Hollow
Lapu-Lapu is not just a symbol of culture. He represents resistance, courage, and justice. Honoring his legacy requires more than pageantry, it requires moral integrity.
There is a growing and painful perception that instead of prioritizing victims, actions taken so far have left them feeling ignored and further burdened.
“Bakit walang malinaw na aksyon ang Filipino BC at bakit tila mas pinahihirapan pa ang mga biktima?”
If decision makers truly witnessed the victims’ realities, the financial hardship, the emotional trauma, the uncertainty, would celebration still be the priority?
This is not about opposing culture.
This is not about tearing organizations down.
This is about justice, accountability, and human dignity.
Until clear answers are provided and victims are meaningfully supported, the community will continue to ask, loudly and unapologetically.
Who is this celebration really for?
#JusticeForTheVictims #lapulapuvictims
ReyFort Media 
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