Since cockfights held outside of a cockpit, called tigbakay are considered illegal and subject to punishment, the Cebu City Council has started debates for the passage of the proposed measure that legalizes the practice.
Councilor Procopio Fernandez, chairman of the committee on public safety, is proposing an amendment of City Ordinance No. 1447 that regulates the operation of cockpits in the city.
Fernandez proposes that the city allow one more cockpit for each of the two districts and to allow tigbakay during fiesta celebrations in the barangays.
At present, there are only two licensed cockpits in each of the two districts of Cebu City.
"Countless requests for the issuance of permit to hold tigbakay were received by the Cebu City Gamefowl Commission, especially during fiesta celebrations of sitio or barangay. However, no permit can be granted because it is not allowed by existing laws," Fernandez said.
But during last Wednesday's council session, Victoriano Chiongbian, owner of Century Game Club in Banawa pointed out that the proposed measure is contradictory to the Gamefowl Commission considering they encourage to put up more cockpits and then here comes the council wants to legalize tigbakay.
"This will be detrimental to existing and licensed cockpits. The licensed cockpits will be put into disadvantage and it would not be fair," Chionbian said, adding that if the tigbakay will be legalized, there will be problems on the supervision by the Cebu City Government.
Chiongbian said that licensed cockpits remit 30 percent of their gross sales to the city government.
Barangay captain Clemente Rosales of Apas, who appeared during the council's public hearing last Wednesday's session, stressed that tigbakay is a popular form of recreation and entertainment among Filipinos.
Rosales, who is known among his constituents as a sabungero or cockfighting enthusiast, said "kaning tigbakay maoy highlight sa mga fiesta. Dili mahimong fiesta kung wala'y tigbakay."
The Talamban barangay council has already passed a resolution supporting the proposed ordinance of Fernandez saying that cockfighting is already part of the Filipino heritage.
Mayor Tomas Osmeña has already said that he tolerates them, although he has cracked down hard on video gambling machines. Osmeña said he favors to legalize the tigbakay, in order to raise revenues for the city, and to cut out another source of bribes for policemen.
Cockfighting has been a popular pasttime in the city since the Spanish colonial days such that the city's first ordinance after the Second World War was on cockfighting rules.
Like most, if not all, of the provinces in the Philppines, Cebu is home to a number cockpits and cockfights. There is total number of 58 cockpits in the whole province - one for each town and approximately two for each of the five cities. The most frequented and the most populated cockpits are the following: Floremer's Sportsman Club in Banilad, Mandaue City; Galleria de Mandaue in Tabok, Mandaue City; Mandaue Coliseum; Capricorn in Lapulapu City; Talisay Tourist Sports Complex in Talisay; and Century Game Club in Banawa, Cebu City. - Garry B. Lao