Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Rolando ‘Klarex’ Uy called on the public Tuesday to help keep the city safe for the duration of the city fiesta as City Hall ramps up its remaining week of activities for the 2023 Higalaay Festival.
In a brief message to open the first ‘Fiesta Sa Baryo’ program at the Misamis Oriental Integrated Sports Complex, Mayor Klarex said it’s both an individual and collective responsibility for every Kagay-anon to be vigilant and help keep the city’s annual fiesta celebration safe for themselves and their visitors.
“To (our constituents), I always ask and remind you not to be too dependent on our city police, our Armed Forces and Task Force Oro (a combined contingent of police-military personnel). We should all assume both individual and collective responsibility to be vigilant in order to ensure our safety and the city’s safety (from criminal and terrorist elements). Only then can we have a safe, successful and peaceful city fiesta,’ Mayor Klarex said in Visayan.
Mayor Klarex also thanked Misamis Oriental Gov. Peter Unabia for allowing the use of the sports complex as venue for the event.
The ‘Fiesta Sa Baryo’ is one of 19 core events of the annual Higalaay Festival and is aimed at reviving public enthusiasm and patronage of traditional Filipino games.
Mayor Klarex said the ‘Fiesta Sa Baryo’ program comes days after the ‘Fiesta Sa Nayon’ program sponsored by the Association of Barangay Captains (ABC) which also lent support for the ‘Fiesta Sa Baryo’ event.
‘Through these two programs, we hope not only to enrich our local culture but also to build solidarity and collective bond with each other in celebrating our city fiesta,’ Mayor Klarex said in Visayan.
Mayor Klarex said the ‘Fiesta Sa Baryo’ program is open to every barangay even those in the hinterland areas. At the same time, Mayor Klarex also invited the program participants to invite neighbors and friends from outside the city to partake and join in the city’s annual fiesta celebration after two years of restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Stephen Capillas of City Information Office)