the Ngibat Water story

Water is LIFE

In the depth and stillness of the night, amidst the cool September winds, the shimmering moon light accentuated Tinglayan’s pride: the sleeping beauty. A group of Ngibat men were dynamic in reminiscing the earlier days of the Butbot tribe. One listened in awe as the men took turns sharing their stories, filling in data gaps, and weaving memories of the days of yore. Nobody seemed to mind the passing of time. Each one was mesmerized by the recollection of historical vignettes their forefathers had left them. It seemed that they had heard the same stories before: each one had something to share and details to add. I, too, was stunned with how the “sharings” went on. . Such a very productive, revealing, and enlightening discussion that sprouted from a very simple question that I had asked of them: “How valuable is water for you?”A very simple question yet it was a question that took the group aback. It was a question that magically invited everyone to share a piece of their own story. “Like the honeybees that converge in honey combs for honey production and consumption, so do people come together in areas where water is available. Like honeybees that do all possible things to protect their food source, so are people impassioned to protect their water source,” they said. Such was the gist of how valuable water is to the people of Ngibat. Taking turns, the men took us back to the earlier days of the Butbot tribe.

…. Thus goes the story …

The Ngibat community is the fifth and the last community to compose the Butbut tribe. Its people came from the Bugnay community, the fourth community of the tribe. When Bugnay’s population increased, some of the residents opted to move out from their community and settle in what they perceived to be a promising land. The people who moved out from Bugnay occupied two settlements. Some moved to where Ngibat is now located while others moved to the upper portion of the place. The latter group finally moved down to where the first group settled when scarcity of water supply became a chronic problem in their area. The group said, “The need for water led the other group to come down to our settlement and join us. The original settlers of our community have come together because of the need of water. Thereafter, we became one bigger community. Thus, Ngibat was born out of the need for water.” Another man said, “People live where food can possibly grow. Water nurtures the land where we grow our food. So I say that water is life.”

….So life went on in Ngibat…

Another man had his own version of the “water is life” story. He shared how historically, the need for water had claimed many lives in the past. Tribal wars erupted between the Butbot tribe and Tulgao and between the Butbut tribe and the Basao tribe. The forefathers told of how the Butbut tribe lived in a place that so rich in natural resources, having wide areas of pasture lands, mountains, vast land areas and water resources. This was so because the Butbut tribe is composed of several communities. The members of the Butbot tribe shared the resources they had with other tribes. However, the tribes with whom they shared their water sources became so greedy that they wanted to direct the water supply to their own village. This prompted the Butbut tribe ( Ngibat vs. Tulgao) to stop sharing. History proves that Tinglayan as well as other communities in Kalinga have, for so long, engaged in tribal wars. Water scarcity in other communities brought the two tribes into warring conditions.

Those were the days of yore…

These days, the community of Ngibat has not been spared from the effects of climate change. Water is becoming scarce, leaving the fields unattended; and potable water is no longer sufficient for the populace. The community’s hope is that history does not repeat itself. Tension is felt in the community, especially among children and women, who usually carry the burden of assuring the availability of water in the homes. Unhealthy exchanges of words among women, as well as fighting among children have become a common scenario in the community.

Thus, the people of Ngibat, as expressed by this group of men, expressed their utmost gratitude for the water project implemented in their community. Aside from the obvious immediate impacts of the availability of water [ie. potable water is within easy access; the water is clean thus the residents are also clean] the Ngibat men are more grateful for the fact that there is no longer tension in the community. They look forward to a future where there would no longer be tribal wars caused by the need for water.

The night has gone deeper, yet the sharing still went on. Much was shared by some while for others like me, much was learned. Indeed, the present generation is educated and made wiser by the stories shared by their forefathers. Their forefathers’ history is their greatest armor now.