THE Kadayawan Executive Committee (Execom) started its preparations this early for the biggest festival here.
Shortly after Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio named the committee heads, the execom already started meeting, said City Administrator Zuleika Lopez.
"We are starting it early so we can get a lot of people from the private sector who will also be involved in the Kadayawan 2018, because the challenge is bigger, better and global," she said.
She added that Kadayawan Festival really constitutes partnership of the city and the private sector.
Last April 23, Duterte-Carpio signed Executive Order No. 08 series of 2018 creating the executive committee and sub-committees of the 2018 Kadayawan sa Dabaw Festival.
Based on the EO, the city mayor will sit as the chairperson, with Lopez as her official representative. Assistant city administrator lawyer Tristan Dwight Domingo is the vice-chair.
Among the members of the Execom are: Councilor Al Ryan Alejandre, chair of the committee on tourism and beautification; Ermelinda Gallego of the Davao City Budget Office; Regina Rosa Tecson of the Davao City Tourism Office; and the incumbent Indigenous Peoples mandatory representative.
The Kadayawan celebration is held every August.