Vigan slips in search for top 7 cities

PLAZA Salcedo in Vigan City comes alive at night with its dancing lights and fountains. NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

The City of Vigan is losing steam after a strong start as among 28 contenders in the search for the top seven cities in the world, according to campaign organizer New7Wonders Foundation.

“With four months left to the end of the first finalist phase in the global New7Wonders Cities voting campaign … cities that were strong in the previous phases, such as Beirut, Durban (South Africa), Mumbai, Vigan and Perth (Australia), are now lagging behind in low-level positions,” the group said in a statement.

Citing information from its analytics department, but without giving details, the Switzerland-based foundation said Vigan and the other contenders should be using the remaining time to “add dynamism and creative ideas” to rack up more votes.

“New7Wonders does not ever disclose the actual ranking position of any participant during the finalist phases, but some early indicators can be revealed,” it explained.

According to New7Wonders, strong performers London, Barcelona, Athens, Havana and Prague are keeping their pace, but they need to keep the momentum.

Middling contenders, such as Seoul, Mendoza (Argentina), La Paz (Bolivia) and Quito (Ecuador), need to boost their standings.

It’s a do-or-die situation for seven finalists “in these four months up to July 7, when the top 28 finalists are reduced to 21 for the next phase, and our experience from the past is that many changes will happen,” said Eamonn Fitzgerald, head of communications at New7Wonders.

“In the end, it’s the strength and creativity of each city campaign that will determine the next round of winners and losers,” Fitzgerald said.

To make it to the list of 28 finalists, Vigan passed the evaluation held last October by a panel led by Federico Mayor, a former head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Vigan, a trading port long before the Spaniards arrived in the Philippines in the late 16th century, is also contending against other “alpha world cities” like Chicago and Vancouver, as well as the romance of Casablanca (Morocco), Istanbul (Turkey), Kyoto and Saint Petersburg (Russia).

Other rivals in the neighborhood include Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur, Phnom Penh and Shenzhen. Others on the list are Doha (Qatar), Mexico City and Reykjavik (Iceland).

The list of 28 finalists will be gradually whittled down to 21 cities on July 7, to 14 cities on Oct. 7,  and to the final top seven list that would be announced on Dec. 7.

Last December, New7Wonders launched a mobile application to drum up the campaign. The app, listed as “N7W Cities” on  Apple App Store and Google Play Store, enables users to vote in the New7Wonders Cities search.

More than simply voting, users can also use the app to promote their favorite finalist by sharing experiences on Facebook as well as uploading personal photos.