The High Price of Modern Circuses

Last March 27, the Kaogma Festival kickoff party surge to life at what they call “Cam Sur Uptown,” just a short distance from my family’s house in Pili.

This festival has always been a highlight of the summer whenever you’re in Pili or nearby towns. It’s one of the few times the masses get to see premiere personalities and musicians in the country free of cost, but of course, never really free, because it is paid for by, and through, the people of Camarines Sur. What’s happening now, though, raises a different question: Is it really “maogma” given the precarious standing of the province, and a world teetering on the edge?

The Camarines Sur government advertises Kaogma as “the hottest festival in the world.” Held each year during the province’s founding anniversary, Kaogma, which is derived from the Bikol word ogma (joy), with the prefix ka- denoting a state or collective condition, literally translates to a shared experience of happiness. It is billed as a week-long fiesta replete with free concerts, fairs, parades, and even sports events. But such festivities are not cheap: official procurement documents show the provincial government approved a ₱98 million budget for consulting services alone (concept, organization, performers, logistics, etc.) for Kaogma 2025. In other words, every concert, game, or free ride is underwritten by public funds.

Camarines Sur is a sprawling province of about 2.06 million people with serious development challenges. It remains one of the poorest in the Bicol region, where over one-third (38.7%) of its families lived in poverty as of 2021. In fact, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) notes that CamSur “needs better opportunities to rise from poverty.” One must wonder if this opulent outlay for Kaogma is justified when many residents lack basic services. Could the same money have funded schools, health centers, or livelihood projects that the province itself concedes are sorely needed?

I’ve experienced Kaogma myself. In fact, i’ve been there, even got VIP passes through a friend who had extra tickets. And I won’t pretend I didn’t enjoy it. I genuinely love the artists, and for a moment, it does feel like something we deserve. But that’s exactly where the contradiction lies: the experience is enjoyable, but it is also funded by the same people who continue to live through the province’s ongoing struggles.

Meanwhile, global events cast doubt on leisure spending. The 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis has driven oil prices to historic highs worldwide, and the Philippines is highly, and dangerously exposed. About 95% of our crude oil imports come from the Middle East, with nearly all petrol and diesel refined in Asia from Gulf oil. Energy officials warn that even threats of a Gulf closure push up costs: tankers reroute, insurance premiums skyrocket, and speculators add a “risk premium” to every barrel. Put simply, a foreign conflict can act like a “fear tax,” that eviscerates pump prices even without a physical shortage. As of March 2026, fuel prices in the Philippines have skyrocketed, with diesel nearing ₱130/liter in some areas and the President declaring a State of National Energy Emergency on March 24, 2026.

In Cam Sur, these fuel prices mean costlier transport, fishing and farming, that directly affects the very communities Kaogma is supposed to uplift. The current status quo demands conservation and efficiency measures to weather such shocks, suggesting that investment in energy savings and resilience might be wiser than big party budgets right now.

It’s worth asking if Kaogma is truly the best use of public money in 2026, or simply a modern form of “bread and circuses.” In Roman times, emperors fed and entertained the populace to distract them from failing governance. As one historian puts it, “bread and circuses” became a metaphor for superficial appeasement. Which means, generating public approval by diversion (food or entertainment) rather than by good policy. In other way to say it, Kaogma’s success owes largely to the provincial government’s willingness to spend on it. But if public funds are finite, such spending may distract from deeper issues like poverty reduction, land reform and social services.

Sure, Kaogma offers entertainment and tourism optics. On the other hand, Camarines Sur’s statistics paint a sobering picture: a large province with stubborn poverty and citizens vulnerable to inflation (especially in fuel and food). As one compares global “circus” shocks and local needs, the question stands: is this festival truly ma-ogma (good) when basic problems persist?Instead of handling those grandnoise events, realigning some festival funds to essential services and livelihood programs would better address CamSur’s existential challenges.

True joy, or as Bicolano says ‘ogma’, cannot be bought through a consulting firm or staged with a free concert ticket pass. As long as our grandest achievements are measured in concert decibels rather than poverty reduction, this festival is nothing more than a neon-lit mask for a province in crisis. Stop telling us we are happy. Start spending like we are poor.