MALAY, Aklan – Will a Boracay Island-style Ati-Atihan celebration push through?
Why not if it can attract more tourists to the famous island resort.
Sangguniang Bayan (SB) member Dalidig Yap Sumndad welcomed such a proposal.
It could lift the spirit and generate positivity among the people of Malay, Aklan after many months of lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, said Sumndad.
Boracay Island is under the jurisdiction of Malay, Aklan.
The original Ati-Atihan Festival, which is in Kalibo, Aklan, is traditionally held on the second week of January every year.
But things would likely be different this January 2021 due to the pandemic. And in Boracay Island which for years also staged its own version of Ati-Atihan but on a much smaller scale, parties and large gatherings have taken a backseat.
SB member Dante Pagsuguiron said new approaches in bringing people back while keeping the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) under control may be explored.
Organizers of the Ati-Atihan could reinvent the celebration and stage activities that adapt to the “new normal”, he stressed.
“It would be great for tourists to experience Ati-Atihan in Boracay Island,” Pagsuguiron said.
Ati-Atihan’s versions in Cebu (Sinulog) and Iloilo (Dinagyang) are planning to go live online in January via social media platforms to safely celebrate despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
For the Boracay Ati-Atihan, the Sangguniang Bayan committees on tourism and laws will confer with church leaders and officials of the Municipal Tourism Office, Municipal Health Office, Sangguniang Kabataan and barangay councils of Yapak, Balabag and Manocmanoc, Office of the Municipal Mayor and the Philippine National Police on how to go about it in case they decide to push through with the celebration./PN
