Sulu now has Center for Culture and Arts

SULU GOVERNOR Sakur Tan praised the Sulu State College for continuing the preservation of the rich heritage and culture, and arts in the historical southern province which is the seat of power of the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo.

Provincial government photos show Gov. Sakur Tan with Sulu State College president Charisma Ututalum after the unveiling of a bronze plate during the inauguration recently of the Center for Culture and Arts.

Tan, who was guest of honor during the recent inauguration of the Sulu State College Center for Culture and Arts, praised the college president Charisma Ututalum, saying: “I have never imagined that this can be realized in such a short time under your administration.”  

He also commended the dynamic, passionate, creative leadership and faculty of the Sulu State College and vowed to support the objectives and programs of the Sulu State College Center for Culture and Arts. 

Tan, who is also a leading advocate of the preservation of Tausug history, said he would rebuild the original palace of the Sultanate of Sulu-Darul Jambangan (Palace of Flowers) in Maimbung town. “This is what I am saying, the great importance of our history, culture and arts, it gives definition to our identity, our heritage as a people, and this is what truly matters,” he said. “To all faculty and staff of the Sulu State College, a job well done; and to Charisma, we are very fortunate to have you as our Sulu State College president. Thank you for your passion and commitment.” 

For her part, Ututalum also lauded Tan for being an inspiration and a pillar of Tausug values. “A quintessential Tausug that best represents our culture, when he walks, when he talks everyone can feel the Tausug aura, making him the Tausug pride,” she said of Tan. 

Ututalum also acknowledged the contribution of Deputy House Speaker Loren Legarda, who ensured the inclusion of the project in the college budget. “Her love for the culture and arts greatly paid off in the different parts of the country, including Sulu. I want to thank her for what she has contributed toward achieving this day and inspiring Filipinos and the Tausugs,” she said. 

She said the Center of Culture and Arts is the first in Sulu - one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region - and will serve as a “vessel for memory, hopes and dreams.” “It is a place where culture is created and shared, places that allow the people of the past to speak to the present and to the future,” she said. 

The Sultanate of Sulu, founded in 1457, continues to lay claim to Sabah which it obtained from Brunei as a gift for helping put down a rebellion on Borneo Island. The British leased Sabah and transferred control over the territory to Malaysia after the end of World War II. But the Sultanate said it had merely leased North Borneo in 1878 to the British North Borneo Company for an annual payment of 5,000 Malayan dollars then, which was increased to 5,300 Malayan dollars in 1903.  

The Sultanate of Sulu is believed to exist as a sovereign nation for at least 442 years. It stretches from a part of the island of Mindanao in the east, to Sabah, in the west and south, and to Palawan, in the north. But North Borneo was annexed by Malaysia in 1963 following a referendum organised by the Cobbold Commission in 1962, the people of Sabah voted overwhelmingly to join Malaysia.  

The Philippines has not abandoned its claim on Sabah. Two years ago, President Rodrigo Duterte’s spokesman and Chief Legal Counsel, Salvador Panelo, said the government has not abandoned its claim on Sabah. Panelo reiterated Duterte’s position that he would pursue the Philippines’ claim to Sabah. “The position of the President, meron tayong claim. Eh totoo namang may claim tayo di ba? That has been a bone of contention ever since,” he said. 

Sulu entered Philippine history as a place-man in the Tao-I-Chih-Lioh of 1349, a compilation of countries and islands that traded with China put together by the traveler and trader, Wang Ta-yuan (Wang Dayuan) toward the end of the Yuan dynasty (1280-1368 AD). 

Its political relations and cooperation with China dated back to the Yuan dynasty (1278-1368). The Sulu missions convinced the Chinese to view Sulu as an equal of Malacca. With Chinese co-operation, Sulu subsequently became an international emporium. The Sulu missions had convinced the Chinese to view Sulu as an equal of Malacca. With Chinese co-operation, Sulu subsequently became an international emporium. 

Sulu featured prominently in the annals of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), being among the first country in the Nanhai (the Chinese term for the South China Sea) to send a tribute mission to China in 1370, two years after the founding of the Ming dynasty; then again in 1372. Sulu continued to send tribute missions to China in 1416, 1420, 1421, 1423 1424, according to historical data which was also featured on the website of GlobalSecurity.org. (Mindanao Examiner)