The Provincial Government will hold a noncompetitive festival showcase on Saturday, Aug. 29, featuring 51 carrozas and seven local festival contingents at the Cebu City Sports Center as part of the province’s 457th founding anniversary celebration.
Participating festivals include Sinulog sa Carmen, Tuba Festival of Borbon, Bisnok Festival of Dumanjug, La Torta Festival of Argao, Hinulawan Festival of Toledo City, Dagitab Festival of Naga City, and Kabkaban Festival of Carcar City, with each receiving a P100,000 subsidy.
Organizers expect around 10,000 spectators at the free event, which features first-come, first-served admission and is secured by around 300 police personnel from Cebu Province and Cebu City.
FOR one afternoon, the streets and communities of Cebu will converge in the city—not for a competition, but to share the sights, sounds and traditions that make each town fiesta unique.
The Provincial Government will hold a noncompetitive festival showcase on Saturday, Aug. 29, as part of the province’s 457th founding anniversary celebration.
The event will bring together religious and cultural traditions through a carroza procession, mass and presentations by local festival contingents at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC).
Provincial Tourism Office head Rowena Montecillo said the gathering is meant to recreate the experience of a town fiesta in the heart of Cebu City.
“It’s not comparable to Pasigarbo sa Sugbo at all. There is no contest, it’s just a plain presentation of their festivals,” Montecillo said in an interview on Wednesday, Aug. 19.
Bringing the fiesta to the city
The celebration will begin at about 2:30 p.m. with a procession of approximately 51 carrozas carrying images of patron saints from Cebu’s towns and cities.
The procession will start at Itax, behind the Capitol Executive Building, and travel along Osmeña Blvd. toward the CCSC.
Two carrozas from Cebu City will also join the procession, representing the Sto. Niño de Cebu and the Birhen sa Guadalupe.
Only one lane of Osmeña Blvd. will be occupied during the procession, with the other lane remaining open to traffic.
At the CCSC, parish priests will concelebrate mass and bless the carrozas.
For the communities behind the participating festivals, the event offers a chance to bring
traditions usually celebrated in their own towns to a larger audience in the provincial capital.
Seven festivals, one stage
After the religious activities, the spotlight will turn to Cebu’s local festivals.
As of Aug. 20, seven contingents had confirmed their participation: Sinulog sa Carmen, Tuba Festival of Borbon, Bisnok Festival of Dumanjug, La Torta Festival of Argao, Hinulawan Festival of Toledo City, Dagitab Festival of Naga City, and Kabkaban Festival of Carcar City.
Each participating contingent will receive a P100,000 subsidy from the Provincial Government.
There will be no rankings, judging or competition.
Instead, the contingents will simply present the festivals that their communities celebrate and preserve year after year.
A different Pasigarbo
The showcase comes as the Province rethinks the format of Pasigarbo sa Sugbo, which has traditionally brought Cebu’s local government units together in a province-wide festival competition.
Launched in 2008 under then governor Gwendolyn Garcia, Pasigarbo became a major annual showcase of Cebu’s local festivals and cultural traditions during the province’s founding anniversary.
After Gov. Pamela Baricuatro assumed office in 2025, her administration began reviewing the format, including the cost of staging the large-scale competition.
Discussions on a leaner format resurfaced in June 2026, including a proposal to call the event “Pasundayag sa Sugbo.”
The Provincial Government eventually opted for a noncompetitive showcase this year.
Executive Chief of Staff James Canoy earlier said the 2026 presentation would serve as a preview for the planned Pasidungog Festival, which is being developed as a full-fledged competition in 2027.
For this year, however, the emphasis is not on winning.
It is on remembering—and sharing—the traditions that make each Cebuano town distinct.
For the public
Organizers expect around 10,000 spectators at the free event.
Admission to the CCSC will be on a first-come, first-served basis. General spectators may enter through access points near City Central and
Abellana School.
Carrozas will enter through the St. Vincent Hospital side, while officials and VIPs will use the entrance near Kalubihan Barangay Hall, in front of ACT.
Around 300 police personnel from Cebu Province and Cebu City will secure the event.
The program is expected to end at about 7:30 p.m.
The Provincial Government has allocated P20 million for the month-long celebration of Cebu’s 457th founding anniversary, down from P25 million in 2025. The activities also include an agri-fair and weekly medical missions.
On Aug. 29, Cebu’s town fiestas will have a common stage—not to compete, but to celebrate what they have carried from one generation to the next. / CDF