Tanauan, Leyte - While people in other places welcome the New Year through various firecrackers of all shapes and forms roaring into the air with million multi-colored lights blazing across the midnight horizon, the municipality of Tanauan does the welcoming in a different manner - the safer and healthier way - through the Torotot Festival.

The Torotot Festival which is now on its 18th year advocates the use of Torotot and noise-making devices other than the harmful firecrackers. The use of Torotot is not only safe, it is also healthy because it is environment friendly, no unhealthy smoke is released.

This year, despite hitches because of unfulfilled promises of support, the advocates went not only around the municipality of Tanauan but also in the neighboring municipality of Palo and the city of Tacloban in order to teach the people that they can still welcome the New Year with a lot of noise without using the hazardous firecrackers.

Mayor Roque Tiu of Tanauan, Leyte said that the Torotot Festival was institutionalized in 1995 when a group of young Tanauananons comprising the BETA 2 organization accepted the challenge of doing something of relevance to the community.

From then on, these young advocates would ride in the trucks of the municipality and other town entrepreneurs and go around the town making noise using the car horns and the local torotots showing the people an example of saying hello to the New Year the safe and healthy way.

Aside from being safe and healthy, the use of Torotots is also economical and the people will be able to sleep longer the following morning without thinking of the clutters of papers and powders after a night of firecracker explosions.

This way, the families will be able to start the New Year without any worries for doctor or hospital bills.

People from other places should follow the example of the municipality of Tanauan's Torotot Festival. (PIA 8)