Grand parade kicks off Panagbenga Festival in Baguio City

BAGUIO CITY – The Panagbenga Festival here kicked off on Wednesday, Feb. 1, with the grand opening parade on Session Road witnessed by hundreds of individuals. The parade started at the Panagbenga Park and ended at the Melvin Jones Grandstand and Football Grounds where a drum and lyre competition participated in by the Lucban Elementary School, Baguio Central School, Doña Josefa Elementary School, and Tuba Central School was held.

City officials led by Mayor Benjamin Magalong and Rep. Mark Go and officials of the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation Inc. attended the traditional interfaith prayer before the parade at Panagbenga Park.

City officials also graced the opening of the Baguio Blooms Market Encounter followed by the PanagbengaScapes: Professional Landscaping Exhibition and Competition at the Melvin Jones Football Grounds.

Thousands are expected to witness other major events of the the Panagbenga Festival:

z Handog ng Panagbenga sa Pamilya Baguio on Feb. 12, which includes the Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom: An Open Painting Exhibition, kiteflying challenge, cultural show, and fitness frenzy at the Melvin Jones Football Ground. z Fluvial parade at Burnham Lake and Mardi Gras at the Lake from Session Road to Burnham Lake on Feb. 19.

z Grand Street Dance Parade on Feb. 25.

z Grand Float Parade on Feb. 26. z Session Road in Bloom from Feb. 27 to March 5.

z Pony Boys’ Day at Wright Park on March 4.

z Grand aerial fireworks display at the end of the festival on March 5. The Panagbenga Festival returned this year after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic.

Col. Francisco Bulwayan Jr., city police chief, said 1,567 policemen were tapped to secure the opening of the festival.

Bulwayan said they were deployed in various areas in the city to ensure the safety and security of the public.

He said police presence will also be increased in bus terminals, malls, parks, markets, and other places of convergence.