SINGER-SONGWRITER and businessman Jose Mari Chan said he is hopeful that the Year of the Dog would be prosperous for the people of Bacolod.
“The country is progressing, and we should not be left behind. We should support our agricultural industry, especially sugar because it is very important industry and we have to support that,” he said.
Chan attended the opening of 13th BacoLaodiat Festival at the South Capitol Road Thursday, February 15.
“I am glad to be here to watch the BacoLaodiat Festival activities and I am happy to be an adopted son and honorary mayor of Bacolod,” he said.
Today, Chan will be conferred the distinction as adopted son and honorary mayor of the city in rites to be held at the Bacolod Government Center.
During the opening rites Thursday, Chan joined Mayor Evelio Leonardia, Councilors Cindy Rojas, Em Ang, and Bartolome Orola, BacoLaodiat chairperson Jennifer Gochangco-Ong and directors Alfredo Barcelona, Leonito Lopue, William Ong, and Crispin Chua.
This year’s festival, themed “A Family Legacy of Loyalty and Honor,” will run until February 18.
BacoLaodiat was coined from “Bacolod” and “Lao Diat,” the Fookien word for celebration.
Leonardia said the BacoLaodiat Festival has already reached a full circle since the festival started also in the Year of the Dog under his leadership in 2006.
“This festival has become an institution and I am very sure this is going to be on permanent basis. Just like the MassKara Festival, this will become one of our icons,” he said.
The mayor noted that the BacoLaodiat Festival is very significant in terms of the integration of the Chinese culture in Bacolod.
“After all, all over the Philippines, we just want to show and prove in Bacolod that the integration is complete and it is the celebration of Bacolod. I am very proud to say that I personally brought this idea to the Chinese community way back in 2005 to show support and appreciation on the contribution of the Filipino-Chinese community to the economy of Bacolod,” Leonardia said.
He said the response for BacoLaodiat was overwhelming and this is the creation that has somehow erased the divisions among the different Filipino-Chinese in Bacolod.
“For me, running the city is always a continuing non-stop process, it’s a question of keeping our acceleration, but hopefully this year, we will be able to increase our speed because what we want is not just growth, but we want a rapid growth in the economy of Bacolod,” Leonardia added.
The mayor said that the entry of big businesses in Bacolod, with all the big players including the Filipino-Chinese, will improve the city’s economy.
The opening ceremony started with the Dazzling Grand Parade from the Bacolod Public Plaza towards the Lacson Tourism Strip and South Capitol participated by various Chinese community groups, city officials and lantern dancers.
On February 16, there will be also be a parade of mascots, dog show, care pooch walk, dance showdown, and symphony of lights and sparks or fireworks display at the South Capitol Road.
On Saturday, there will be a lantern dance competition and fireworks display at Lacson Street at 7 p.m. and on Sunday, the closing ceremonies at the Bacolod Government Center, with the awarding of top three winners of lantern dance competition and fireworks display.
Gochangco-Ong said the Year of the Dog is the symbol of loyalty and honesty and for businesses, this is not the year to be experimental, but this is the year to continue what you have been doing.
