Overheard from a very lively elderly woman (obviously a supporter of the defeated mayoralty candidate of Bulusan) while on a jeepney commute to Gubat : "Somebody played a joke on me the day after the counting was completed. I found my slippers tied with what seems to be a 'gabon' (weed grass) but upon my close scrutiny, it was a tanglad (lemon grass)." Laughing heartily after relaying the incident to the delight of the fellow passengers and then making a sigh, "my body can feel the aches now after the campaign..the feeling is heavier since the other side won. But what can we do? Pierde si Pay (our candidate Pay lost)." I listened and wondered how come this culinary star became associated with the 'losers' of the elections in Bulusan? Some say that this is so because tanglad is the usual ingredient for cooking chicken dish - associating this with cockfighting i.e. losing fighting cocks are still good as chicken dish thus the need for tanglad.
Since ancient times though plants are already used as symbolic emblems. For example the laurel is for victory and olive branch is for peace. This Bulusan association of tanglad to defeated candidates however has a playful humorous twist.
Further research lead me to an information that reed, a kind of plant in the grass family is also used as a symbol for defeat and humiliation. Makes sense since tanglad belongs to the grass family.
Photo: Alma P. Gamil
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