PANABO CITY, Davao del Norte – Secretary Martin Andanar of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) has called for unity despite differences in culture and politics.
“We may have distinct thoughts or disagreements or beliefs but underneath these seeming differences, we all have the same dreams and the same hopes,” he said in his speech during the opening ceremony of the Binulig Festival here Tuesday afternoon.
Andanar, who was special guest at the event, said Binulig underlines the country’s diverse cultures, creeds and convictions, a mix of urban and rural features and of political persuasions yet held tightly together as one nation.
He said even President Rodrigo Duterte emphasizes the need for Filipinos to bond as one people amid diversity.
Andanar said the Binulig Festival highlights unity and pride “as we celebrate not just bounty of harvest from the soil but from the love that reconciles us to one another.”
“May we all be touched by the symbol of your abundance,” he added.
Now on its sixth year, the Binulig Festival is celebrated by Panabo City every October as a thanksgiving celebration for a bountiful harvest.
This year’s theme is “Pagpapasalamat, Pananghiusa, Paglambo (Thanksgiving, Unity, Progress)”.
This five-day celebration began with the Sayaw sa Kadalanan, a vibrant street dancing parade at the Panabo City Gym Grounds. It also coincides with the Buwan ng Tribu, a celebration of the Indigenous Peoples’ month in the city.
Panabo City is known as the banana capital of the Philippines because of its vast banana plantations. (Lilian Mellejor/PNA)
