The 16th Bacolaodiat Festival in Bacolod City has been cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“In consonance with the muted festivals nationwide amid the global pandemic, the board members of the Bacolaodiat Incorporated and the organizers of the Bacolaodiat Festival deem it proper to forgo the holding of the festival this Lunar year of the Metal Ox,” Oddette Ong-Gomez, Bacolaodiat Festival chair, said yesterday.
The Chinese New Year is set on Friday, Feb. 12, that had been declared a special non-working holiday in the Philippines, by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 986, dated July 30, 2020.
The organizers said “Sans the clanging sounds of the gongs, the glitter of the fireworks displays, and the spectacle of dragon and lion dances, the spirit of the Bacolaodiat Festival is still very much alive with the modest yet, meaningful display of lotuses, and highlighted by the Zodiac Animal Ox as centerpiece, currently on display at the Bacolod City Government Center grounds”.
Ong-Gomez said, “As we remain sensitive to the call of the times, like the Ox, may we also remain strong in our faith that all our hard work this New Year will be rewarded with luck and prosperity in the coming years.”
Bacolaodiat is a mix of “Bacolod” and “Laodiat”, that is a Chinese word for celebration. Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the festival was established to recognize the contributions of the Chinese-Filipino community to Bacolod City.*CGC
