More than 1,000 Catholic devotees joined the inaugural fluvial parade, “Libad Apu Sto. Cristo,” marking the opening of the Sampaguita Festival 2026 in Lubao town.
The municipal government said the event is the first fluvial procession held in the town in honor of Apu Sto. Cristo, establishing a new religious and cultural tradition.
The activity was led by Former President and Pampanga Second District Representative Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Mayor Esmie Pineda, Sasmuan Mayor Catalina Cabrera, former Santa Rita Mayor Yolly Pineda and other officials.
The image of Apu Sto. Cristo was placed on a boat and paraded along a two-kilometer stretch of the Porac-Gumain River, from the Bamboo Hub to Dalan Bapor, with more than 30 boats participating and hundreds of devotees lining the riverbanks.
The local government said that symbolic activities, including the release of doves and fingerlings into the river, were conducted to represent peace and prosperity for the community.
Parish priest Jess Manabat explained that the image of Apu Sto. Cristo was originally found in water, making the fluvial parade a "meaningful return to the devotion’s origins and a way to deepen faith among devotees."
