ILOILO City – The Iloilo Festivals Foundation, Inc. (IFFI) welcomed new officers following the resignation of Atty. Jobert Peñaflorida as president effective July 1.
The foundation’s new president is Dr. Ronald Raymond L. Sebastian.
IFFI also welcomed its new vice president, Allan Ryan Tan, and newest trustee, Roel Castro.
“We humbly ask for the support of the community in our upcoming endeavors. We wish to take this opportunity to thank Mayor Jerry Treñas, the city government, partner organizations and individuals, and benefactors for the unwavering support these past two years,” said IFFI chairman, Rito Carlos “Judgee” Peña.
The Foundation and Treñas expressed their gratitude to Peñaflorida, who would serve as consultant to the Board of Trustees, for steering the Dinagyang Festival “despite the challenges in 2019 and the sacrifices demanded by 2020”.
“We have seen how much we can accomplish if we put our acts together and work closely and united as a people. Santo Niño is the unifying factor for Iloilo City. Let the sacrifices of Atty. Jobert be our inspiration as we bring Iloilo City out of the pandemic. Batò Iloilo!” Treñas said in a statement.
GIFTED TO GIVE
For Peñaflorida, spearheading IFFI on a purely voluntary basis was his most challenging community service to-date.
The “360 degrees” was more than just a Dinagyang tagline; it was his own personal journey, he said.
“Dinagyang 360 in 2020 and Dinagyang Digital in 2021 brought the premier festival to greater heights and to unique platforms and uncharted territories that were truly unprecedented,” he said.
Peñaflorida attributed this to the collective efforts of all stakeholders. He said these were the people from both the public and private sectors that he would always be grateful for.
While there are still many areas for improvement, what have been achieved “certainly elevated the standards of mounting a world-class festival several notches higher” and will serve as a template for the next organizers, Peñaflorida said.
“We have built strong and sturdy blocks that have laid the solid foundation for the Foundation and the festival to further grow and flourish. Indeed, I feel grateful for the gift to give. It was an opportunity to serve our fellow Ilonggos through IFFI. It has bolstered my faith and devotion to the Child Jesus and in what we can do as a people when we get our acts together,” Peñaflorida stressed./PN
