Mountain Province gives PNP chief an adopted Bontoc nickname

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – Police Chief Ronald Dela Rosa is fondly known as “Bato” (stone) because of his strong-headedness and his being proudly bald.

Adding to the “Bato” nickname, however, is a new monicker: “Moling,” which means “unbreakable” or “firm” in Bontoc. It is also a river boulder that is hard, smooth and almost unbreakable.

PNP Chief Dela Rosa was given the adopted name by Mountain Province Gov. Bonifacio Lacwasan Jr. last April 7 as part of the province’s culminating program, the Lang-ay Festival.

Moling was given the “pinagpagan” or the Igorot blanket of the kadangyans, a suklong or headgear, a tubay or spear, and a kalasag or shield during his adoption as the son of the Mountain Province.

Dela Rosa expressed his gratitude to the provincial government for attaining a drug-free status.

“This is our golden opportunity as a Filipino people to prove to the whole world na kaya nating umangat, kaya nating disiplinahin ang ating sarili at kaya nating talunin ang problema sa droga,” he said.

After his adoption, Moling and family went to Sagada for a tour of the place. 

Reopening Sumaging cave

Sagada tourism officer Robert Pangod said Dela Rosa’s entry to the Sumaguing cave actually formally re-opened the spelunking activity in Sagada. It was temporarily closed after the accidental death of a 15-year-old Sagada boy who fell last April 3. 

Pangod said that the caves in Sagada were closed to give way to a cleansing ritual after the death of a boy who passed through the other caves to gain entry to Crystal Cave. The said cave was usually secured by a padlock in its entrance but the Sagadanians were able to find alternate routes to the cave through Sumaguing and Lumiang Caves. 

The boy was discovered to have died from the fall at 3:00 pm of April 3. He was extricated 6 hours later, then brought to the St. Theodore Hospital. 

Sagada Mayor James Pooten Jr. said that the ritual that necessitated the closure of the caves was shorter because the victim was a young boy – Rappler.com