BACOLOD City – About 16,000 people flocked to the Bacolod City Government Center on Monday evening to welcome 2019.
This capital city’s New Year’s Eve countdown featured a grand fireworks display, which was sponsored by call center firm Panasiatic Solutions.
“We can be proud of 2018. Many, many things happened in Bacolod and I assure you that Bacolod today is one of most progressive cities in the Philippines,” Mayor Evelio Leonardia said in his speech.
He added: “Let’s look forward to 2019 with enthusiasm and optimism.”
The program started at 6 p.m., featuring live band performances, a singing competition, and a raffle draw.
Leonardia said the countdown was a fitting conclusion to a great year.
In 2018, Bacolod marked its 80th year as a Chartered City, highlighted by the celebration of 39th MassKara Festival in October.
The 21-day festival themed “Happy Birthday, Bacolod” was capped with the arrival of President Rodrigo Duterte, who graced the MassKara for the third consecutive time since 2016.
Leonardia said MassKara 2018 was “for the books,” gathering the biggest number of crowd up to date.
In the first week of December, the Malacañang Records Office informed Leonardia that Duterte had signed Republic Act (RA) 11146, declaring June 18, 1938 as the day Bacolod City Charter Day.
The new law repealed RA 7724 that set Oct. 19 as the Bacolod City Charter Day. (With PNA/PN)
