CEBU CITY, Philippines - Limited financial resources have reduced the number of participants in this Saturday's Haladaya Festival in the town of Daanbantayan, northern Cebu.Mayor Sun Shimura said many coastal barangays (villages) were affected by the passage of Typhoon Frank last June, making it hard for them to afford sending a contingent to the festival. “We had to cluster (affected barangays) with other barangays to reduce expenses,” Shimura said. On Saturday, 14 contingents are expected to join the festival competition. Last year, there were 19 contingents. The contingents are scheduled to assemble at the town’s sports complex. From there, they will hold a short parade through town streets and return to the sports complex for a grand showdown. The competition is divided into two divisions – elementary and secondary. First place winner in the elementary division will get a cash prize of P50,000. Second place will get P30,000, while third place gets P20,000.
In the secondary division, the first place winner will get P70,000, P50,000 for second place and P30,000 for third place. The Haladaya Festival is named after a legendary pre-Spanish town chieftain, Datu Daya. The festival is held in time with the feast day of the town’s patron, Saint Rose of Lima.
The festival revolves around the heroism and bravery of Datu Daya who, according to legend, founded the town.
“The Haladaya Festival is now known internationally. Former town residents who are now working abroad come home for the fiesta,” Shimura said.
The Haladaya Festival used to be held earlier in the year, right after Holy Week. But some former residents who are now based abroad requested to have the celebration coincide with the feast day of the town patron.
“Because of the requests, we decided last year to have the festival in time for our fiesta,” he said. |
