DOLE Sec Bello Bauko Begnas festival speaker

By Gina Dizon

BAUKO MOUTAIN PROVINCE- The 11th Begnas festival held March 9-11 shall be celebrated with contests, games and  Department of Labor and Employment Secretary (DOLE) Atty Silvestre Bello as honorary speaker on March 10.

Assistant Secretary Atty Marie Banaag of the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) and former Natonin mayor shall be delivering her message at the Bauko Poblacion grounds on March 9.

Also, solidarity messages shall be delivered by adjoining municipality Tadian Mayor Atty Anthony Wooden and sister municipality of Tabuk City mayor Ferdinand Tubban.

Activities on March 9  include the opening of the agro tourism and livelihood fair on March 9 with the  festival’s theme, “Gabay di esek, sikan di taraken, bikas di umili: Gameng  ay  katagtagowan  di  lilitagwan”  (Robust  plants,  bounty animals,  people’s strength:  wealth  to  sustain  generation).

Bauko mayor Abraham Akilit  said the theme “embodies the nature of every Bauko people striving for food abundance while conserving the nature’s wealth for the future generation. We remember our forefathers’ saying, “et ed wani et mangan ka yan din anan-ak pay?” (it is good that you have something today, but how about the future generation?).

Vegetable producing Bauko boasts of its organic food products and processed foods such as   peanut butter, chili sauce, turmeric tea, popular lang-ay wines and Bauko Arabica coffee.  Search for healthiest barangay shall be done with Begnas cook fest particularly that of the local ‘sabeng’;  along with cultural presentations on the 1st day of the event.

A place blessed with nature’s beauty, the much trekked Mt Polis at Bagnen Oriente   including Layaan Trek   at Poblacion and Toktok Allan adventure at Bauko Poblacion shall kick off on March 9.

March 10 is a day for contests on folk dances, ballroom dances, musical-literary events, ballgames, and indigenous games with the participation of delegates from the municipality’s member-barangays.

March 11 shall also be a day for marathoners to join the run at 5:30 in the morning with assembly at the Municipal grounds.  

Begnas  di Bauko was declared as the official town fiesta of Bauko  through Municipal Ordinance No. 030-A.

Begnas is also called ‘pis-ik’ usually  performed  to  ask  Kabunyan, the spirits of the ancestors and spirits of habitation for socio-economic favors. Begnas is also performed after calamities and pestilence for protection. Begnas is the enabling  force  to renew  ties with  the people’s ‘ili’ where  thevillage  people  are  one   in  invoking   Kabunyan and  the  spirits for favor, protection  and  thanksgiving  for  their  homeland.