- CHERYL G. CRUZ
The four major sponsors of this year’s MassKara Festival celebration formalized their partnership with organizer Bacolod Yuhum Foundation “to deliver the best” festival, with the grand countdown salubong set this Friday, Sept. 30, at the Bacolod Government Center.
Bacolod Yuhum Foundation president Atty. Pinky Mirano-Ocampo signed the memorandum of agreement Tuesday with San Miguel Brewery Inc. territory sales manager Jeremy Losbañes, SM City Bacolod mall manager George Jardiolin, Jennifer Palmares-Fong, vice president for Sales and Marketing of Megaworld Visayas, and AB Leisure Exponent Inc. president Rafael Jasper Vicencio for BingoPlus.
“The MOA signing is a historic testament of our covenant to ensure, secure, and deliver the best MassKara Festival we’ll have since the 1980s,” Mirano-Ocampo, also the festival director, said.
Losbañes said that SMB has been a dependable sponsor of the MassKara Festival through the years, and the company wants to help Bacolod recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jardiolin said the SM Prime Holdings Inc. has also been there from the very start to support the festival. It’s time that we bring back tourists, bring back the smile, to help revive the economy of Bacolod, he added.
Palmares-Fong said that since Megaworld has a township in the city, they are very excited to host several activities at The Upper East, including the electric MassKara float and dance off competition on Oct. 22, and several sports events spread in the three-week revelry.
BingoPlus, the first live streaming bingo in the Philippines licensed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, is a first-time major sponsor of the world-renowned festival.
“We can see the semblance of passion shared by MassKara and BingoPlus, to bring entertainment that gives rewarding experience and adds value to participants and the audience,” Vicencio said in a statement. “BingoPlus wants to be associated with the festival, and bring back entertainment. This is a very meaningful CSR (corporate social responsibility) initiative for BingoPlus.”
He said they will hold a MassKara raffle campaign from Oct. 1 to 22, and lucky winners of P100,000, P75,000, and P50,000 will be announced on Oct. 23.
Meanwhile, the official kickoff starting at 4 p.m. on Sept. 30 at the BGC will be star-studded, featuring Rico Blanco and local and guest performers, the organizer said./CGC
