GABALDON, Nueva Ecija — This third-class municipality is celebrating its bountiful harvest with this year’s staging of the 10th annual “Gulayan Festival” starting from January 16 to 29, 2023.

The two-week-long festival, which is a celebration of thanksgiving and prayers for its patron, Saint Paul de Apostle, will also feature several activities showcasing the town’s cultural traditions and rich natural resources.

A highlight of the festival is the “Float Parade” slated to be held at 6:30 a.m. on January 27 wherein local residents put on display the town’s native products through colorful floats decorated with rice, corn, vegetables, fruits and hand-crafted ornaments.

Municipal mayor Jobby P. Emata said another highlight of the festival is the “open category” of the street-dancing competitions where other local government units from the province are invited to join the event and vie for the top prizes of P150,000, P100,000 and P75,000 for the champion, second and third placers, respectively.

“Malaki ang prize natin para maraming sumali na LGU,” said the lawyer-mayor.

Vice Mayor Victorino V. Sabino said the municipal government sponsored the 2023 Mayor’s Cup Inter-Barangay Basketball and Volleyball League with 17 teams from the town’s 16 barangays and another from the Indigenous People’s group joining in the competition that started on December 27 last year.

“Sabik ang ating mga kababayan ngayon kasi dalawang taon tayong natengga dahil sa pandemya kaya pinag-gayakan nang todo ng ating munisipyo sa pangunguna ni Mayor Jobby Emata ang selebrasyon ngayong taon,” said Sabino.

The vice mayor said the provincial government headed by Gov. Aurelio M. Umali will also sponsor a bingo cards event and a variety show to be held on the last day of festival on January 29.

Gabaldon, whose main tourist attraction includes the famed Dupinga River for its crystal clear waters, is an agricultural town with over 56 percent of its total land area devoted to farming.

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Steve A. Gosuico