BACOLOD City — Inclusivity and celebration take center stage as the Paralympiada, a special fiesta for children with special needs, becomes one of the featured events of the Cadiz City Dinagsa Festival in Negros Occidental.
Cadiz City officially kicked off its 52nd Dinagsa Festival on January 16 with the Patikanay Drumbeating Competition held at the Cadiz Grandstand at 5 p.m., marking the start of festivities that will run until January 26.
On January 23, ahead of the Miss Dinagsa 2026 coronation pageant, the Paralympiada will take the spotlight in the morning. The event will gather learners from various Special Education (SpEd) schools across the Negros Island Region and Panay Island.
Led by the Department of Education (DepEd) – Division of Cadiz, the Paralympiada has been a Dinagsa tradition for more than two decades. It showcases the talents, abilities, and resilience of children with special needs in a festive and supportive environment, underscoring the festival’s commitment to inclusion and equal participation.
Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. said Dinagsa continues to evolve through the years.
“Every year, Dinagsa is a festival of many breakthroughs. We make sure revelers have something to look forward to. We will not allow Dinagsa, a celebration of our faith in Señor Sto. Niño de Cadiz and all the blessings He has bestowed upon us, to be boring,” Escalante said. “A lot of surprises will surely greet and amaze tourists and revelers alike.”
The Patikanay Drumbeating Competition features homegrown drum-beating groups vying to produce an authentic sound branded as “Tunog Cadiz.”
“It is a kind of indigenous ‘rock and roll’ through drum-beating,” Escalante added.
The festival calendar also includes a wide range of activities covering spiritual, sports, cultural, agricultural, fishery, and educational events. Celebrity concerts are likewise among the highlights of this year’s Dinagsa.
Major festival activities unfold on January 24, beginning with the traditional Diana at dawn, followed by cultural performances such as Sayaw Pagdayaw and Sinaot Cadiznon along the city’s main thoroughfares.
A fluvial parade will be held in the afternoon at Banquerohan Port, where devotees are expected to gather for the religious tradition that has been observed for more than five decades.
Festivities continue into the evening with street parties and fireworks displays.
The highlight of the celebration, the Dinagsa Festival Street Dance Competition, takes place on January 25, featuring contingents performing along major city routes and designated performance areas. The day also includes the Ati street dance competition.
This will be followed by the much-anticipated Lamhitanay sa Dalan, dubbed the city’s “colorful street chaos,” where thousands of revelers joyfully splash one another with non-toxic paints. The event is considered Dinagsa’s signature attraction and is unique to Cadiz City.
The festival concludes on January 26 with the Misa Fiesta, a concelebrated Mass at the Sto. Niño Parish Church, marking the close of this year’s Dinagsa Festival./PN
