Dinagyang 2006 launching set Oct. 28
The Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation Inc. (IDFI)and the city government of Iloilo are now getting ready for yet another grand celebration of Dinagyang Festival next year.
Dinagyang 2006 will be officially launched this coming Friday, October 28, at SM City Iloilo. Next year's celebration, to highlight on January 28 and 29, will revolve around the theme: “Healing thru devotion to Sr. Sto. Niño.”
In a media briefing, Nena Magalona of the Philippine Information Agency said IDFI has already mapped out plans and strategies aimed at making Dinagyang 2006 another huge success.
Magalona said IDFI hopes to increase visitor's arrival next year by 50 per cent. She said visitor's arrival for Dinagyang 2005 only registered 34 per cent.
Magalona noted that there would be changes in next year's Dinagyang as part of moves to improve the celebration.
Among which is the making of the tribes competition only under one category. As of October 17, 2005 a total of twenty tribes have already registered with the IDFI. These are: Tribu Pag-asa, Tribu Pana-ad, Tribu Molave, Tribu Pari-anon, Tribu Atub-atub, Tribu Familia Sagrada, Tribu Bantu, Tribu Kalubihan, Tribu Dagyaw Ta, Tribu Angola, Tribu Aninipay, Tribu Hamili, Tribu Himala, Tribu Halimaw, Tribu Ilonganon, Tribu Silak, Tribu Paghidaet, Tribu Baryohanon, Tribu Bola-Bola, and Tribu “Ang Taga Jaro.”
As usual IDFI would be shelling out funds for the participating tribes to defray cost of joining the contest but it would be regulated.
Full financial assistance would be given to groups or tribes that have joined the competition for the last three years immediately preceding the contest, ranked within the top ten of the previous year's contest and a participant of good standing without any violation of festival rules.
Partial financial assistance, on the other hand, would be given among those that have joined for the last two years and not included in the top ten ranking.
Magalona added, to highlight the religious significance of the festival the Sr. Sto. Niño from Cebu will again be brought here in Iloilo and would be made to stay longer so that devotees could have enough time to pay tribute to it.
To note, IDFI has allotted P10 million for the celebration, of which P2 million is earmarked for financial assistance to Ati-ati tribes and P720,000 for the Kasadyahan tribes.