Rama ok to give lingam operations "due course"

CEBU, Philippines – While Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he is personally against lingam massage, he assured that his administration will give due process to those who are operating such businesses here in the city.

“I am not in favor of lingam, but there should be due process. Lisud man gud kon moderitso ra ta’g ingon nga dili nato tugotan pero walay balaud nga nagdili, it would be unfair to those concerned,” Rama said when he attended the 888 News Forum at the Marco Polo Plaza yesterday.

There is no record at the Cebu City Hall that shows that it granted business permits to lingam massage parlors in the city, although there are reports that some massage parlors operating in the city are offering lingam massage.

Lingam massage became controversial in Cebu the past weeks after Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes ordered the closure of a lingam massage parlor in Mandaue City, not for the reason that the lingam method is illegal but because the said establishment lacked the required permits.

Cortes said after he received a report from Provincial Board Member Agnes Magpale about the operation of lingam massage in Mandaue City, he quickly acted on it.

Lingam is the Sanskrit word for the penis and also literally means "wand of light".

Lingam massage reportedly cures men’s difficulties including premature ejaculation and prostate cancer.

Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young earlier told the reporters that he welcomes lingam spas in the city because it has drawn a lot of tourists.

Rene Bullecer, who used to be the head of the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board, described lingam massage as a form of masturbation and said it should not be allowed to operate here because it is immoral.

But an owner of a lingam massage parlor in the city had said that her female attendants will not touch the male’s genitals but only the nearby soft tissues where the prostate pressure point is located.

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said Cebuanos do not need foreigners who come here just for lingam massage.

“I really opposed it. If they have perverted sexual problems let them go elsewhere for their perversions to be satisfied,” she told reporters during her regular press conference.

“Dili ta makililimos nga ingon ani-on ta pagyaga-yaga ug ibaligya ang babaye tungod lang sa kuwarta.”

Provincial Board member Arleigh Sitoy submitted an ordinance regulating the operation of lingam spas in the city but it has not yet been referred to the appropriate committee, PB member Agnes Magpale also submitted a resolution for the total banning of lingam spas but is still waiting for its second reading.

The governor said that if foreigners come to the province just because of lingam it can degrade the reputation of the province.

“We don’t need for them to come. We build up Cebu’s image and culture. We are not beggars,” she said. – Rene U. Borromeo and Ria Mae Y. Booc/BRP (FREEMAN)