Surrey, B.C.
Who is telling the truth?
Analysis
Teodoro Alcuitas
Editor, Philippine Canadian News.om
Two prominent leaders in Surrey are in conflict as to who is to claim the honour of the first to celebrate Filipino Heritage Month in this bustling and fastest growing metropolis in British Columbia.
As the month of June ended, Narima dela Cruz of the Surrey Philippine Independence Day Society (SPIDS), fired off an open letter to Surrey Now newspaper disputing their July 8, 2023 headline ‘Festival celebrating Filipino heritage coming to Surrey for first time’. Dela Cruz alleged that Rey Fortaleza’s claim about his (Fortaleza’s) being the first is wrong and false. Dela Cruz pointed to the newspaper’s own coverage over the years of SPID’s annual celebrations since 2009.
According to Dela Cruz, the paper immediately corrected the mistake and edited their online version.
Fortaleza sent a response to Philippine Canadian News’ request for comment:
“Festival celebrating Filipino heritage coming to Surrey – Surrey Now-Leader (surreynowleader.com) As a longtime resident of Surrey, I very much know that there had been celebrations of Filipino culture in the city in the past, and I would never claim to anyone that Filipino culture has never been celebrated in Surrey. I have secured the rights to present Fiesta Extragavanza in B.C., and you can read about this festival that is held in multiple locations across Canada here: Fiesta Extravaganza.”
Full text of Open Letter
Surrey Filipino Canadians SPIDS Surrey Philippine Independence Day Society
An Open Letter to Surrey Now Leader Newspaper on a wrong and false claim by Rey Fortaleza about his Fiesta Extravaganza “being the first” to celebrate Filipino Heritage and that it “never” happened in Surrey.
[Note to our readers here: the article’s online version is now the EDITED version AFTER we sent this letter so the title was changed and the statement on question was removed, with Editors note at the end and a 2018 article link added], and for CLARITY to our readers, we ATTACHED – the 1st 2 photos here – the screen-prints of original article with title and statement containing false claim by Rey Fortaleza]
Re: Festival celebrating Filipino heritage coming to Surrey for first time by Anna Burns on the Surrey Now Leader July 8 issue
Dear Editor,
While we appreciate that your paper writes about Filipino cultural events, we would like to call your attention on the inaccuracy of facts presented on this article. The title itself is misleading.
The Filipino community has been actively celebrating Filipino heritage and culture for years since 2009 – and with respect to our elders, even before that, likely in the 90’s.
In fact, the longtime organization of Filipino Canadians in Surrey, the Surrey Philippine Independence Day Society (SPIDS), the main organizer of the annual Philippine Independence Day celebration and festivities in Surrey for the past 11 years before it was halted by the pandemic in 2020 for its supposed 12th year event, was the very organization that hugely contributed in the signature petition for the motion M155 by MP Salma Zahid which led to the Government of Canada’s official declaration of the month of June as Filipino Heritage Month all over Canada.
The signatures were presented to the Parliament by no less than Surrey Centre MP Randeep Sarai on April 26, 2018. SPIDS and the Surrey Filipino community celebrated the declaration in January 2019 and June 2019 and both events were attended by many officials in the 3 levels of government.
In fact, the B.C. government also declared June 2019 as Filipino Heritage Month in B.C. and this was read by MLA Rachna Singh witnessed by all her colleagues, MLAs Bruce Ralston, Harry Bains, Jagrup Brar, Jinny Sims, Gary Begg, and then Surrey MLAs Stephanie Cadieux and Tracy Reddies, Surrey MPs Randeep Sarai, Sukh Dhaliwal, Ken Hardie, and then Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum and Councillors Linda Annis and Allison Patton, then Philippine Consul General Maria Andrelita Austria and her entire PCG officials & staff during the SPIDS June 2019 celebration (photos attached).
Furthermore, Surrey Now Leader Newspaper has featured our celebration for years, one that we still find online is this one in 2018 and a Surrey Now Leader file photo taken in 2012 was even used. https://www.surreynowleader.com/…/surrey-site-for…/
Also attached herewith are file photos of when Surrey Now Leader went and took photos at the events.
The City of Surrey also declared June as Filipino Heritage Month in June 2020 by Mayor Doug McCallum, and once again, by Mayor Brenda Locke this June 2023, for the same reason that the Filipino community through Surrey Philippine Independence Day Society (SPIDS), has been helping the community constantly and continuously celebrates in the past many years.
During the pandemic years (2020, 2021, 2022) SPIDS respectfully and quietly celebrated Filipino heritage by organizing a blood drive for Canadian Blood Services and by paying tribute to the healthcare and frontline workers.
This year (2023), SPIDS coordinates with the City of Surrey and organizers of the Fusion Festival to ensure that the Philippines Pavilion is alive and vibrant, and is one with the multicultural mosaic of Surrey.
Your article says “Celebrations for Filipino Heritage Month have taken place in various cities across the Lower Mainland but never in Surrey. Guildford resident Rey Fortaleza wanted to change that…” is a blatant lie, and it is more distasteful in the point that your source is a publisher of a community newspaper and should know very well that Journalism is an ethical responsibility and not a grandstanding.
The community deserves better from its leaders and those aspiring to be one.
While there is absolutely nothing wrong with organizing and promoting an event, we believe that organizers should aim to impress by their own merit and not by distorting history.
Not correcting the facts on your article is an utter disrespect and insult to the many volunteers who have been making those events happen for so many years now.
I trust that Surrey Now Leader Newspaper, with its credibility and integrity built in many years, will not allow itself to be used by deceptive and fallacious claims and will be cautious and vigilant in the future not to be misled again by grandstanders and ostentatious organizers.
Truly yours,
Narima Dela Cruz
Founder, Surrey Philippine Independence Day Society (SPIDS)
President, Filipino Canadian National Congress (FCNC)