Dagupan’s Bangus festival postponed due to COVID scare

DAGUPAN CITY –– Mayor Brian Lim on Friday (Mar. 13) postponed the annual Bangus Festival, which was supposed to be staged from April 15 to May 2, to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Lim announced this on the heels of an order from Pangasinan Governor Amado Espino III to suspend all public gatherings that draw large numbers of people.

To date, the city has no patient infected with COVID-19 that has triggered a pandemic.

But while the Bangus Festival is a most anticipated event in the city, “it is important to prioritize the health of the residents and visitors,” Lim said.

This year’s festival was supposed to mark the return of the “Kalutan ed Dalan” street party to downtown Dagupan, where it was launched in 2001 until subsequent administrations moved the event.

Lim said the Bangus Festival, which celebrates Dagupan’s chief product, the milkfish, may still be held at a later time this year, although the government is prepared to cancel it if the COVID-19 crisis worsens.

Lim said the event’s sponsors, including people who bought grills for the Kalutan ed Dalan, would be reimbursed.

The Magic Mall of Companies has postponed the Miss Magic, an annual beauty pageant, which could have been part of the Bangus Festival.

Lim also suspended classes in all levels in the city from March 15 to April 12, to allow school administrators to disinfect their respective campuses.

“The nature of the virus is it is easily transmitted from human to human, and there is no guarantee that it wouldn’t reach the city, but it is important to practice good hygiene, like proper washing of hands,” Lim said.

“This is our first time to deal with this problem. We are also learning along the way. We are not perfect and our solutions are not perfect. But if we are together, if we practice cooperation and discipline, we can resolve this problem,” he said./lzb