THEY SPEND their days navigating busy streets, ferrying passengers to their destinations and working long hours to provide for their families. But during the MassKara Festival, Bacolod City’s tricycle drivers are getting a chance to step away from their daily routines and take center stage.
Through Tricycle Operators and Drivers Association (TODA) Day, the MassKara Festival 2026 is recognizing the hardworking transport workers who help keep the City of Smiles moving, highlighting not only their contributions to public transportation but also their talents, creativity and community spirit.
Held on October 14 at the Bacolod Public Plaza, the celebration organized by the Bacolod Gugma Foundation Inc. (BGFI) brings together transport groups from different barangays for activities showcasing their skills, personalities and pride in their communities.
For Christopher A. Mallo, TODA Day event organizer under BGFI, the celebration is an opportunity to recognize the role of tricycle drivers in providing accessible transportation to residents and visitors.
The inclusion of the transport sector in MassKara, he said, reflects the organizers’ and the city government’s commitment to making the festival more inclusive by giving different community groups opportunities to participate.
The Public Plaza served as a venue for sectoral activities, allowing groups that are often overlooked during major festivities to become part of Bacolod’s biggest annual celebration.
Mallo said TODA Day also gives drivers a platform to demonstrate what they can do beyond their everyday responsibilities of transporting passengers and earning a living.
He added that the celebration honors not only drivers’ contributions to public transportation but also their talents, creativity, confidence and artistic abilities.
Behind the handlebars
Many tricycle drivers navigate congested roads, connect neighborhoods with commercial centers, transport students and workers, and help residents reach essential services and tourist destinations.
Their contribution becomes especially important during major city celebrations, when residents and visitors rely on affordable, accessible transportation to move between festival venues.
Public utility drivers often extend their operating hours to accommodate festivalgoers, helping them travel to events and return home conveniently.
Yet despite their everyday contribution, drivers are often recognized primarily for the service they provide rather than for their individual talents, aspirations and personal stories.
TODA Day seeks to change that by giving transport workers their own moment in the spotlight.
Under the theme “Barangay versus Barangay,” participating groups competed in activities designed to showcase their creativity, energy, confidence and community pride.
One of the highlights, TODA Best Man, featuring10 drivers from different transport organizations demonstrating their personalities and talents while sharing their stories.
Another attraction, TRISIKAT, showcases 20 entries representing various barangays, with participants presenting creatively designed and illuminated tricycles that will add color and excitement to the celebration.
Together, the activities aim to show that the men and women behind the handlebars possess abilities that extend beyond their daily work on the road.
Recognition beyond the festival
Rudy Catedral, president of the Bacolod Alliance for Commuters, Operators and Drivers Inc. (BACOD), welcomed the opportunity to recognize the transport sector during MassKara.
He said tricycle drivers deserve appreciation for their dedication to transporting passengers, supporting their families and contributing to the community’s progress.
Catedral also expressed gratitude to the Bacolod City Government under Mayor Greg Gasataya for providing a venue where drivers could showcase their talents, skills and unity as part of the festivities.
For him, TODA Day is a reminder that drivers are not merely service providers but members of the community who also deserve opportunities to be recognized and appreciated.
Their participation reinforces the idea that a citywide celebration becomes more meaningful when it includes the people whose daily work contributes to the city’s economic and social life.
For some drivers, however, recognition during the festival is only one part of what they hope to receive from the local government. They also look forward to practical assistance that could ease their daily expenses and improve their livelihoods throughout the year.
A call for livelihood support
For 35-year-old Rome Obrique, a tricycle driver from Purok Riverside, Zone 3, Barangay Banago, who has spent five years in public transportation, TODA Day offers a welcome break from his usual routine.
Obrique said the event gives drivers an opportunity to enjoy the festivities and feel appreciated for their contributions to the city.
He also welcomed the recognition of their role in supporting not only their families but also Bacolod’s economy and tourism industry.
However, he hopes government assistance will extend beyond the festival, particularly through fuel subsidies and other forms of support for transport associations.
He also expressed hope that drivers could receive livelihood assistance or capital to establish small businesses, such as sari-sari stores, that would provide additional income for their households.
Such assistance, he said, could help drivers supplement their daily earnings and achieve greater financial security, especially amid rising fuel costs.
His aspirations underscore the economic realities faced by many public transport workers, whose earnings are affected by fuel prices, operating expenses and fluctuations in passenger demand.
While TODA Day provides an important opportunity to recognize their service, their concerns also point to the need for sustained livelihood programs that could help improve their economic well-being.
For drivers like Obrique, meaningful recognition means more than being celebrated during a festival. It also means having opportunities to improve their livelihoods and build a more secure future for their families.
A festival for every Bacolodnon
As Bacolod celebrates MassKara 2026, TODA Day sends a message that the festival belongs not only to performers, business establishments and tourists but also to the everyday workers who contribute to the city’s character and progress.
For a few hours, the focus shifts from daily routes and passenger fares to the drivers’ talents, creativity and personal stories.
As illuminated tricycles bring color to the celebration and TODA Best Man candidates showcase their abilities, the event becomes more than a competition among transport groups. It becomes a tribute to the hardworking men and women who keep Bacolod moving, one passenger and one journey at a time.
And in a festival built around smiles, TODA Day offers a fitting reminder: those who help bring people to their destinations also deserve their own moment of recognition./PN
