Biliran’s capital staging its Bagasumbol Festival
NAVAL, BILIRAN — Mayor Gerard Espina, in a press briefing Wednesday, announced that the municipal government of Naval, the capital town of Biliran province, has lined up a number of activities in celebration of its fiesta, the Bagasumbol Festival, from September 26 to October 6.
The Bagasumbol Festival, representing Biliran’s legend, culture, and history, will be celebrated with a grand parade and competition of six dancing contingents from six of the eight towns of the province.
Espina said they are expecting up to 10,000 locals and visitors to join the annual festival. “Our local celebrations are becoming more popular through social media promotions. We expect that more people will come and join the fun. We want people here to experience what is like to celebrate festivals in cities,” he said.
Naval State University president Victor Cañezo, Jr., chairman of the 2018 Naval Fiesta executive committee 2018, said the local government provided financial support to participating festival contingents from other towns. “This is the first time that almost all towns are represented,” he said.
Another event is the “Tsinelas (flipflops) Party,” a party of the people from all walks of life, to be staged along Naval’s major streets, on the evening of October 6, the day of the town fiesta. This yearly party was started in 2007, and became one of the biggest street parties in the country.—