RECOGNITION Inquirer correspondent Leo Udtohan (center) receives the Best in Feature Writing award from Bishop Marcelino Antonio Maralit Jr. (second from right) and organizers of the first Cebu Metropolitan Catholic Mass Media Awards on Sunday. —Mary Grace Oberes
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Leo Udtohan, a correspondent for the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Visayas Bureau, received top honors in the feature writing category of the first Cebu Metropolitan Catholic Mass Media Awards (CM-CMMA) on Sunday.
Udtohan, who covers Bohol province, received the award from Bishop Marcelino Antonio Maralit Jr., chair of the episcopal commission on social communication of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, in ceremonies at SM Seaside City here.
“I am overjoyed, humbled and filled with immense gratitude as I received the award. This is one of the happiest moments of my life, and I want to thank the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu for the recognition,” Udtohan said.
READ: Tourism gem rises out of Bohol quake ruins
“I shall always hold it as a beacon for anything I may be able to do in the future. I hope this will inspire me and other journalists to strive for excellence in fact-based journalism and to write more inspiring, life-changing and positive stories,” he added.
READ: Dancing in Loboc
Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, in his message during the first CM-CMMA, stressed the importance of strengthening the family.
Outstanding work
The CM-CMMA recognizes outstanding work of media practitioners and organizations within the ecclesiastical province of Cebu, which comprises the Archdiocese of Cebu, and the suffragan Dioceses of Dumaguete (Negros Oriental), Maasin (Southern Leyte), Tagbilaran (Bohol) and Talibon (Bohol).
For the competition, Udtohan submitted five feature stories published in the Inquirer: “Tourism gem rises out of Bohol quake ruins;” “Bohol’s ‘chocolate princess’ won’t give up Pinoy cacao;” “Bohol artist turns sea trash into art;” “Protecting Bohol for the next generations;” and “Dancing in Loboc.”
In “Tourism gem rises out of Bohol quake ruins,” Udtohan highlighted how the October 2013 earthquake that devastated Bohol and its neighboring provinces in the Visayas created a natural attraction in the coastal towns of Maribojoc and Loon.
“Bohol’s chocolate princess won’t give up Pinoy cacao” narrated how Dalareich Polot, known as Bohol’s “chocolate princess,” supports local cacao growers to create livelihood opportunities for villagers.
Udtohan, in “Bohol artist turns sea trash into art,” told the story of Pedro Angco Jr., an artist from Baclayon, Bohol, who turns trash he finds in the sea into artworks depicting nature or demonstrating how God teaches people to take care of the environment.
“Protecting Bohol for next generations” focused on the life and advocacy of Boholana environmental lawyer Esther Gertrude “Gigi” Biliran.
Udtohan, in “Dancing in Loboc,” presented how Boholanos and other devotees show their devotion to the La Virgen de Guadalupe de Extremadura through dancing the “bolibong kingking,” a religious ritual, in Loboc, Bohol.
Udtohan, a native of Tagbilaran City, joined the Inquirer as a correspondent in 2014. He has been a stringer of GMA Integrated News since 2001. He was a finalist for the Best Investigative Report category in the 38th Catholic Mass Media Awards in 2016.