Why Tanay poet Doc PenPen should be declared National Artist for Literature

MANILA, Philippines — To date, no one among the local and international literary luminaries has circumnavigated the world—from the Philippines to the Dead Sea to the last frontier of Antarctica—to rally his fellow poets to wield their pens as instruments of peace, brotherhood and reconciliation, carrying the Pentasi B Vision, “No colors, no races, all colors, all races, all love, embrace,” except Dr. Epitacio Tongohan.

He is a medical doctor living in Tanay, Rizal, and is known to the world as Doc PenPen Bugtong Takipsilim or simply Doc PenPen.

Without diminishing the contributions of other Filipino poets and artists, Doc PenPen is the only Filipino in Philippine literature who has boldly and tirelessly campaigned for the official declaration of the Philippines as the Poetry Heart of the World.

This dream, if realized, could bring immense benefits to the Filipino nation. As Romeo Della Valle, Poet Laureate of New York, predicts: “Doc PenPen's brilliant idea of creating a World Poetry Gallery… the Philippines will become the Mecca of world poetry!”

This vision aims to galvanize the collective brilliance of Filipinos, leading to significant economic and cultural progress.

Doc PenPen, a Filipino poet, has transformed the landscape of language with his groundbreaking poetry known as “Pentasi B Poetry”—incorporating the 5Ms concept in visual poetry: multilingual, multimodal, multiangular, multisensorial and multidimensional.

This innovation has earned him global recognition and established him as a true visionary in the realm of poetry. Pentasi B is an acronym, as explained by Edwin Cordevilla—a poet laureate, journalist, critic and former press undersecretary for the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administration—stands for (P) Poetic and Philosophical Content, (E) Extraordinary and Evolution, (N) Neo or New Genre, (T) Technology, (A) Arts and Aesthetics, (S) Science, (I) Invention and Innovation and (B) Bio or Life.

During the 2013 Pentasi B Historical Forum, spearheaded by the National Library of the Philippines, Dr. Lily Rose Tope, a professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman, highlighted Doc PenPen’s introduction of a unique form of poetry, warranting him the