Evacuees get livelihood in Iligan’s ‘Diyandi’ festival

city government here has provided livelihood to some internally displaced persons from Marawi City who the city is hosting.

The Executive Management Board of the Diyandi Festival 2017 gave out stalls to 50 evacuees to enable them to sell inside the newly-opened Diyandi Fiesta Park in Doña Maria in Barangay Tipanoy.

City Councilor Sol Bacsarpa, overall chairperson of the festival said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) – Iligan paid the rental of the stalls priced at P4,500 each.

More than 400,000  residents were driven out of their homes  in Marawi City when it was attacked by the ISIS-inspired Maute group last May 23.

They sought temporary shelter in evacuation centers  in other Lanao del Sur towns and in this city. According to the Department of Social Welfare and Development, more than 80 percent  of the evacuees seek refuge from their relatives in different parts of the country.

Last September 13, the Diyandi Fiesta Park was formally opened,  al though amusement rides and other business es  ha ve  been operating here since the first week of the month.

The operation of the park, formerly known as Mugna, which was later changed to Taboan sa Iligan, and now Diyandi Fiesta Park, is part of the month-long celebration of the city’s annual fiesta.

The official Diyandi Festival celebration will be on September 20 to the first Monday of October this year.

September 20 is the ritual of the Catholic Iliganons where they are going to bring down the image of the patron St. Michael De Archangel from the altar down to the main entrance of the church where devotees can easily access for their prayers. The ritual is called Pakanaug. The patron’s image will be brought up to its proper place on first   Monday of October and Catholic devotees called it Pasaka.

Bacsarpa said the park’s name, Diyandi Fiesta Park, is inspired by their theme “family gathering and funfare.” (davaotoday.com)