By CHRIS V. PANGANIBAN
PROSPERIDAD, Agusan del Sur—This year’s celebration of Naliyagan Festival 2024, from June 12-17, is set to be livelier with a greater variety of crowd-drawing events, but with stricter protocols on the single-use plastics ban and child protection policy.
The new policy on child protection includes the prohibition of minors from drinking alcoholic beverages and from working in booths selling such drinks. This will be enforced throughout the duration of the festival.
Parents of little children are told to bring a personal ID that tells the child’s name, address, name of parents or guardian and emergency mobile phone number.
A Child Protection Desk Hotline Number was posted at Naliyagan Festival facebook page and these numbers will be posted on tarpaulin around the venue.
The prohibition of single-use plastics was first enforced in last year’s celebration which saw VIP guest and top provincial officials, serving as models, brought drinking tumblers and flasks.
The child security policy is part of the anticipation to manage huge crowd as it happened last year when organizers claimed a 100,000 crowd jumpacked the Vice Ganda concert at the main venue of Datu Lipus Makapandong Cultural Center on June 17th.
“[This is] a little discipline to us, people of Agusan del Sur. I know we will get used to it,” Cane told reporters during the festival opening last year. “This will make Agusan del Sur free from further damage [that single-use plastics] bring to the environment.”
He said that the province may already be lagging behind the good practices already done by big malls, where mallgoers were made to use reusable bags when they bought something.
The ban on single-use plastics is covered by Republic Act No. 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 and the memorandum circular that the governor issued on Sept. 30, 2019.
Major highlight of the celebration was the yearly “Bae Naliyagan” beauty pageant at the main venue on June 16 where 14 bets from the 13 towns and a city in Agusan del Sur vye for the coveted crown.
Movie celebrities Kim Chu and Paulo Avelino will serenade the lovely contestants during the Bae Naliyagan 2024 coronation night.
The opening event will be a mixture of paying tribute to 126th Philippine Independence Day and another homeage to the different Agusan lumad groups through the tribal parade around the thoroughfares of the 200-hectare provincial capitol complex , a Kalayaan Jobs fair, tribalympics, bauto (banca) race at the government center lagoon and Indigenous Peoples Night where Datu Waway Saway and the Talaandig Republic will entertain the crowd.
Day 2 will be dedicated to the Upland Sustainable Agriforestry Development (USAD) Day and the Bae Naliyagan Festival Costume Competition in the evening.
USAD is the centerpiece program of the provincial government of Agusan del Sur to help lowly farmers uplift their living conditions with proper technology including soil health test program.
Robotics technology enthusiasts will have a field day on day 4 during the Department of Science and Technology Project Launching, Robotics Exhibition and Competition, a first in the 32 years of the yearly festival.
Capping the six-day event will be the 57th Founding Anniversary of Agusan del Sur celebration with the traditional festivities of Binaga Tu Naliyagan or the grilling of the local delicacy of mudfish (locally called Haluan) participated by all provincial capitol offices and national government agencies.
Young concert goers will have a grand time enjoying the live concert of the popular band SB19 at 8 pm onwards and the much awaited Grand Fireworks Display that will last for several minutes will formally close the festivities.
Other popular performers in the six-day event includes Apo Hiking Society on June 15, Arthur Nery and Zack Tabudlong on June 14 and rappers Skusta Clee and Flow G on June 13.
Popular bands in many parts of Mindanao including local Agusan Marsh Band and Palalabs band will perform nightly at the Second Stage near the Jose Rizal statue.
Other popular performers in the six-day event include Apo Hiking Society on June 15, Arthur Nery and Zack Tabudlong on June 14, and rappers Skusta Clee and Flow G on June 13.
Popular bands from many parts of Mindanao, including local Agusan Marsh Band and Palalabs Band, will perform nightly at the Second Stage near the Jose Rizal statue.