Cadiz City will officially begin its 52nd Dinagsa Festival today, promising a lot of surprises from day one until the end on the 26th.
“Every year, Dinagsa is a festival of many breakthroughs. We see to it that revelers will have something to look forward to. We will not allow Dinagsa, a celebration of our faith in Sr. Sto. Niño de Cadiz, and all the blessings he bestowed upon us, to be boring,” Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. said.
The 52nd Dinagsa will kick off through Patikanay Drumbeating Competition to be held at the Cadiz Grandstand at 5 p.m., showcasing the authentic drum beat or music that could truly be branded as “Tunog Cadiz”.
“It is a sort of a ‘rock and roll’ in an indigenous way via a drum beating tilt,” the mayor said.
The coronation pageant for Miss Dinagsa 2026 is also one of the much-awaited events on Jan. 23.
Before the coronation pageant, Paralympiada, a fiesta for “special kids” will take center stage in the morning.
Various Special Education schools in Negros Island Region and Panay Island will converge in this unique fiesta.
Major festival events will unfold on Jan. 24, beginning with the traditional Diana at dawn.
Cultural performances such as “Sayaw Pagdayaw” and “Sinaot Cadiznon” will fill the Cadiz main thoroughfares.
A fluvial parade will be held at Banquerohan Port in the afternoon where Sto.Nin̈o devotees are expected to flock and join in this religious tradition for more than five decades now.
Festivities continue into the evening with street parties and fireworks displays.
The highlight of the celebration, the Dinagsa Festival Street Dance Competition, will take place on Jan. 25, as contingents perform along major city routes and designated performance areas.
It will be followed by the much-awaited “Lamhitanay sa Dalan”, a Cadiz event branded as the “colorful street chaos”, where thousands of revelers enjoy staining each other using colorful non-toxic paints.
The 52nd Dinagsa will conclude on Jan. 26 with the Misa Fiesta, a local concelebrated mass at Sto. Niño Parish Church.
“Above all, Dinagsa is not just a celebration – it is also a way of strengthening and sustaining our faith in the Child Jesus, the Sr. Sto. Niño de Cadiz – our great protector and our great provider,” the mayor said. ||
