TACLOBAN CITY – Seven contingents from various villages and schools in Ormoc City will compete to determine the champion of the 2024 Piña Festival.
This year’s Piña Festival 2024 contingents include Pundok Sidlakan, Pundok Kasadpan, Don Felipe Larrazabal’s Hamtatamsi, Pundok Mapasalamaton, Pundok sa Nagkahiusang Ormocanon, Pundok Madasigon, and Pundok Pamilyang Aloysians.
A key part of the festival competition is the Festival Queen pageant, with the pre-judging held on Sunday (June 16) at Robinson’s Place Ormoc.
The Festival Queen candidates are Amehan Gonzales of Western Leyte Colleges Pundok Kasadpan, Charlene Angel Custodio of Eastern Visayas State University Pundok Sidlakan, Monette Paula Mangcol of Hamtatamsi, Rafa Monica Fernandez of Brgy Linao Pundok Mapasalamaton, Darianne Luna Aerni of STI College Ormoc Pundok sa Nagkahiusang Ormocanon, Princess Navarro of Brgy Ipil Pundok Madasigon, and Jezreel Madriaga of St. Aloysius Institute of Technology Pundok sa Pamilyang Aloysians.
The Festival Queen pageant, street dancing, and ritual competition are scheduled for Sunday (June 23). The event will start at Robinsons Place Ormoc and proceed to the Ormoc City Sports Complex, to be graced by Rep. Richard Gomez (4th district) and Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez.
The Piña Festival, first held in 2017, is a tribute by Ormoc City residents to the countless blessings they have received and a celebration of the bountiful pineapple harvest.
Ormoc’s Queen Pineapple is one of the sweetest varieties in the world and is the city’s second-largest agricultural product, following sugarcane.
Also part of the Piña Festival 2024 is the Higantes Competition, with entries participating in the parade from Robinsons Ormoc to the Sports Complex.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA/LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
