By Shayne Elizabeth T. Flores and Julliane Nicole B. Labinghisa

Following delays and unprecedented changes on the last day of Far Eastern University’s (FEU) week-long 97th Founding Anniversary celebration, ‘SAYAWIT ‘25: Battle of the Bands’ (BOTB), or ‘Sayawit Day 2,’ is set to push through as an external event.

In a statement released by FEU Central Student Organization (FEUCSO), discussions were done over the week to address concerns and possible actions for rescheduling the BOTB:

• February 15: The proponents recalibrated and planned the measures in accordance with the postponement before meeting with the talent organizations.
• February 16: FEUCSO met with the participants for a consultation and post-mortem leading to a submission of a new project proposal inclusive of the recommendations. 
• February 17-18: The proponents pushed through with other necessary steps. 
• February 20: Coordination meeting with the administration, laying out two options for the BOTB: hold it as an external event on February 28 or wait until the next activity period on March 24.
• February 21: Further coordination was done to finalize the details of the BOTB to be set on February 28. 

With the added costs brought by the delays and rescheduling, FEUCSO vowed to cover the expenses for the food, transportation, and music studio for practices for the bands, along with an increase of the cash prize for the winner. 

Moreover, on top of the 10 allotted guest seats, additional seats were given for each talent organization through a pre-registration system. 

Delays

FEU’s annual dance and music competition, Sayawit, was originally scheduled from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the FEU Grandstand last February 14, with the winners slated to perform at the One Concierto Piyu (OCP) 2025 in the afternoon. However, the program did not proceed as intended.

In a dialogue with FEU Advocate, former FEUCSO President and Sayawit Head Coordinator Joshua Maigue shared that Sayawit was initially delayed due to complications with the approval of stage suppliers’ entry forms.

“The supplier namin, they arrived on time since supposedly may ingress sila last night, though there were concerns with approval ng entry forms nila so even if they got here on time, hindi agad naipasok ‘yung ilang gamit. And then may nangyari rin na supposedly from one gate sila papasok, [but] they were asked to reroute to a different gate so napatagal ‘yung paghakot nila ng equipment,” he explained.

As a result, the Sayawit stage setup was completed at approximately 8 a.m., also pushing the soundcheck to begin late until the sudden rainfall.

“Natapos namin ang blockings and everything ng dance pero since mas maraming bands, around halfway lang kami natapos sa soundcheck tapos dun na dumating ‘yung ulan,” Maigue stated.

According to the Sayawit head coordinator, electrical hazards compelled production suppliers to suspend stage operations.

As the rain persisted, FEUCSO decided to relocate the Battle of Dance (BOD) to the Engineering Building Mini Auditorium. On the other hand, BOTB’s time slot was further pushed to coincide with OCP’s pre-show in the afternoon.

“Once ma-finalize ‘yung venue for Mini Auditorium, for transfer na tapos dun na magre-resume ‘yung buong program ng Battle of Dance. For Battle of the Bands, we’re on standby until ma-finalize ‘yung rewiring ng Grandstand… So once na ready na ulit ‘yung Grandstand, magpu-push through na ulit ‘yung program for Battle of the Bands,” Maigue said in a follow-up dialogue prior to the resumption of Sayawit.

However, despite concessions, Sayawit’s modified schedule was still not carried out as planned.

The BOD commenced around noon in contrast to the announced 10:40 a.m. Additionally, the dance competition concluded without an award ceremony.

Furthermore, BOTB was eventually postponed due to persisting technical challenges.

As a result, original plans to include winners of both Sayawit segments in the OCP lineup was suspended as well.

Postponement coordination

Prior to the conclusive postponement of the music band competition, negotiations were held among the Student Development (SDev) Office, FEUCSO, and other concerned student organizations.

“The meeting earlier was focused on how we can have a common ground despite the difficulties we faced especially doon sa nangyaring mishaps on technical challenges, delay on schedule dahil nga umulan and such,” FEUCSO President Christmer Ordanes stated in a separate interview with FEU Advocate.

The dialogue concluded with the decision to defer the BOTB program to a later date within February to prioritize the preparation of OCP.

“Pinark muna namin siya as of the moment because we have to focus on One Concierto Piyu, where thousands of students are also waiting for us to deliver well with this event,” Ordanes added.

According to the FEUCSO President, SDev also directly reached out to the involved talent organizations to relay the changes, resulting in the proposal of ‘Sayawit Day 2.’

In separate online interviews with FEU Advocate, several student council (SC) presidents further detailed the developments of the negotiations.

“Our talent organizations, specifically the IABF Powerband, are greatly dismayed by this decision to postpone the BOTB. I was there as they aired out their frustrations and worries the moment I relayed the decision given to us at the office. As one of IABF (Institute of Accounts, Business, and Finance)'s representatives, I, along with the fellow institute council presidents, did our best to contest the decision,” IABF SC President Kristine Joyce Ramirez said.

Compelled to comply with the final decision, Ramirez stressed their need of assurance that Sayawit Day 2 would push through amid their doubts and reservations.

“Honestly, all that and other talks about possible compensation/s to be received by the performers would not be sufficient to pacify and suppress the disappointment and frustration of the bands (not only IABF's), but I still hope that they'll be true to their word and truly achieve the day 2 for BOTB,” she said.

On top of assistance and additional budget for studio space rental and rehearsals, the IABF SC president sought a flexible time schedule that would allow talents to perform without worrying about compromising their academic commitments, as well as an adequate crowd to support the program.

Moreover, Institute of Arts and Sciences (IAS) SC President Sebastian Matthew Santos stated that SDev Director Rondell Gascon assured students that the office would prioritize rescheduling BOTB.

“At the same token, we, as the institute councils, have also expressed our stance in support of this plan and commit to ensure that the efforts and resources poured by our talent groups will be given the same, if not greater, platform and recognition,” he added.

Despite said assurance, Santos relayed his constituents' concerns about Sayawit Day 2 not being as ‘grand or impactful’ as initially planned. Hence, he hopes for SDev and FEUCSO’s continued and increased support to their talent organizations.

Similarly, Institute of Architecture and Fine Arts (IARFA) SC President Phoebe Sarmiento conveyed their commitment to ensuring that their talent organization will be given the same platform to showcase their talents, expecting support from the SDEV office regarding the rescheduling. 

“Stay true to what they have said during the meetings: to support the student organizations in ensuring that the events will push through at the most ideal rescheduled time—especially the events that participants have spent time, effort, and money on to be able to perform,” Sarmiento said.  

Meanwhile, Institute of Health Science and Nursing (IHSN) SC President Lawrence Aidan Cunanan expressed their dissatisfaction with the turnout of events, with compromises faced by talent organizations, leading to a wasted opportunity to showcase their talents. 

“In a nutshell, SAYAWIT 2025 was sidelined. It did not feel like an actual event fostering the diverse capabilities and art of our home-grown talent. Though to be fair to FEUCSO, there are forces that are beyond our control like the rainfall experienced, but this could have been prevented with more thorough and extensive planning,” the IHSN President said. 

Additionally, Cunanan calls for the support and consideration from SDev in easing bureaucratic processes for student-led events, such as the extension of University hours in certain events as a leeway.

The IHSN President also suggested the decentralization of responsibilities to student councils and organizations to better serve the student body. 

Along with BOTB, the postponed award ceremony for BOD will also proceed on the same day of the rescheduled event.

- With reports from Maxine Alessandra B. Turiano and Johna Faith Opinion
(Photo by Shane Claudine Rodulfo/FEU Advocate)