ILOILO City – Due to the well-applauded performances of eight tribes in the Kasadyahan sa Kabanwahanan competition of the recent Dinagyang Festival, the plan to stage it as a distinct festivity has resurfaced.
This was planned a few years ago but was aborted because of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, said Dr. Eden Deriada, chairman of the Kasadyahan Festival Committee of the Iloilo Festivals Foundation, Inc. (IFFI).
“Kon mag-agree man si mayor ma-separate siguro… We hope pero depende na sa city government, kay Mayor Treñas kag sang IFFI,” said Deriada.
There was no Kasadyahan competition in 2021 and 2022 because of the pandemic.
Deriada said the initial plan was to stage the Kasadyahan during the Charter Day celebration of Iloilo City every August.
“Depende na, we might plan to have it provincial level lang. Iloilo City and province lang guro anay. Pero interested ang iban nga provinces in the region,” she said.
Citing feedbacks from spectators as well as her personal assessment, Deriada said the performances of this year’s eight Kasadyahan entries were impressive.
Except for Guban Manughaw-as sang Dumangas, the seven others were first-time Kasadyahan contenders.
“Ang presentations tanan very unique, colorful… Nag-level up gid. Paglibot ko ‘ni sa ila, medyo may mga kulang-kulang pa. I never expected pag-perform nila, they gave their best. Excellent,” said Deriada.
Meanwhile, two of the many foreign dignitaries who graced the Kasadyahan sa Kabanwahanan on Jan, 21 were full of praises.
“I love the colors and dedication of the people. Everything is perfectly organized,” said Romanian Ambassador to the Philippines Raduta Dana Matache.
She’s coming back for Dinagyang 2024, she said.
Embassy of Poland in Manila chargé d’affaires Jaroslaw Szczepankiewicz lauded the performances of the tribes.
“Maganda, very nice. I like it,” he told reporters.
Szczepankiewicz said he would definitely recommend Iloilo City as a good destination to visit when he returns Poland.
“I always say you have the best food here, lots of ancestral houses and museums to visit. Iloilo has the potential to be the cultural center of the Philippines,” he added.
The proposal to remove Kasadyahan from Dinagyang first surfaced in July 2019 with the creation of the IFFI which took over the management of the Dinagyang Festival from the Iloilo Dinagyang Festival Foundation, Inc.
Former Department of Tourism regional director Helen Catalbas said there should not be any problem./PN
