TACLOBAN CITY – The National Maritime Polytechnic (NMP), the only government maritime training and research institution in the country, with main office located at Brgy, Cabalawan, Tacloban City, joined the whole international maritime community in celebration of the Day of the Seafarer 2022 with the theme: “Your voyage – then and now, share your journey.”
The celebration is held every June 25 each year. However, considering that the date falls on a Saturday, the activities this year were held on 24 June 2022 to ensure the attendance of its honorees – the NMP trainee-seafarers.
Various activities were lined-up with the ultimate goal of paying tribute to the key role of Filipino seafarers and their invaluable contribution to the national economy amidst the challenges and precarious situations brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The activity kicked-off with a Holy Mass and was followed immediately with the floral offering rites where NMP trainees, guests and employees offered prayers to the departed seafarers as flowers were laid at the open sea along the San Juanico Strait. Also, to pay homage to its trainee-seafarers, a Trainees’ Night, filled with music dance was also organized by NMP.
One of the highlights of the activity was the Search for Bb. MARINO 2022, a pageant, putting men in women’s shoes, was anchored on the NMP’s desire to be an active arm in the awareness and advocacy towards a gender sensitive society and gender diversity. Noteworthy, that the maritime industry is not anymore, a male-dominated sector with the acceptance of female shipping crew and staff. Effective gender and development program need not only be the responsibility of women but of all individuals – including the male members of the society.
The search was participated in by three (3) contestants – one (1) from the NMP trainees and two (2) from NMP Job Order Workers (JOWs).
Mr. Enrique P. Beringa, NMP-trainee taking up Basic Training (BT) course snagged the crown as the NMP’s Bb. MARINO 2022. Runner-ups were Mr. Israel Anthony C. Lagunzad (1st Runner-up) and Mr. Jason John C. Tabuac (2nd Runner-up). Each contestant received cash prize, bouquet of flowers and tokens.
The activity was aimed to: a) promote gender relations in the maritime workforce; b) promote good emotional health among NMP seafarer-trainees, and c) maintain comradeship and sportsmanship among NMP employees and its clients.
For more updates and stories, visit the NMP website at www.nmp.gov.ph/ or the official Facebook page at www.facebook.com/nmptrainingcenter. Interested stakeholders may log-in to https://register.nmp.gov.ph/ to view NMP trainings and register online, while NMP’s ongoing and completed researches may be accessed through the e-Research Portal at https://research.nmp.gov.ph/.