Sogod launches Panagsogod Fest

Foreign and local tourists are expected to witness Sogod town’s first ever Panagsogod Festival, which was formally launched yesterday.

Sogod acting Mayor Lissa Marie “Moonyen” Durano said there are several contingents that would be joining the street parade during the town’s fiesta on July 25.

“We feel that this is an opportune time to start anew and give thanks. We believe the festival will usher in more blessings for Sogod and its people,” Durano said in a press conference at Casino Español

Durano said the first Panagsogod Festival will give life to the town’s eponymous name as it will serve as a sneak peek to what lies ahead for a town inhabited by people formerly living an ordinary lives.

“As if we have just been reborn with a new zest for the future. This is our gift to our people,” Durano said.

The Panagsogod Festival, with a slogan “Ang Sinugdanan,” was inspired by Sogod’s little known history of being the borderline of black and White sand beaches in northern Cebu.

Durano said the name Sogod also connotes more than a hint of a beautiful coastline as it is more like a mantra as well as an allusion to new beginnings, hopes and thoughts of a better future.

Durano added that the holding of the festival was in response to the call of Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia for the city to establish a festival as part of the province’s promotion of its culture and heritage.

The province will be soon celebrating “festivals of festivals” during its founding anniversary next month. The festival would be a contest in which all municipalities and cities will participate.

Sogod will have a busy calendar of events beginning July 5. The municipality will also be sponsoring a mass wedding for 120 local couples as well as the reception.

There will also be a concert featuring R and B prince Jay-R Siaboc on July 24, a dance concert, beauty pageant, agro-fair, and trade exposition, among others. – Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon/LPM