PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte will take part as the guest of honor in the culmination of the Kaamulan Festival this Saturday, March 25.
“I could not tell you what time [he’ll be arriving] for security reason, but definitely he’s coming,” Bukidnon Governor Jose Maria Zubiri Jr. said.
Zubiri said all the security measures had already been prepared for the President’s appearance, especially at the Provincial Capitol grounds where the ethnic street dance showdown will take place.
At the grounds, the area in front of the stage was cordoned off with steel railings to prevent the spectators from going near where Duterte will sit.
Among the attractions of the festival, which runs from February 1 to March 25 are bazaars, garden show, food fest, agri-fair, cultural arts exhibit, concerts, tribal rituals, drum and bugle contest, fish and tarantula show, ethnic sports, tribal wedding, sports tournaments, pageants, fun run, and the ethnic street dancing competition.
The Kaamulan is an ethnic festival held every year in Malaybalay. The word comes from the native term “amul” meaning “to gather,” hence, it is the assembly of Bukidnon tribal peoples for various purposes ranging from an enthronement of a “datu” or a lumad or an indigenous people’s leader, a wedding ritual, a celebration of a great harvest, a peace settlement, among others.
Duterte will also ground break the drug treatment and rehabilitation center in Casisang village, Malaybalay, later in the afternoon of the same day.
According to reports, the proposed rehab facility will be built on a five-hectare lot in Casisang and is estimated to be worth P700 million.
A memorandum of agreement was already signed between National Government agencies Department of Health and the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Friends of the Philippines Foundation, a non-government organization and the donor of the said amount.
Under the agreement, the foundation will shoulder the costs for the design and construction of the facility.
For its part, the health department will fund its operations and maintenance once the rehab center is finished.