THOUGH February 10 this years falls on a Saturday, Laoag City Mayor Michael V. Fariñas said the proposal to make the said date a permanent holiday in the city is still pending at Congress. Last year, the Sangguniang Panlungsod approved the said proposal which commemorates the feast day of St. William the Hermit, the city’s patron saint, and which is also the Pamulinawen Festival main celebration day. In the past year, the said date was declared a special holiday for the city through an Executive Order from the President. In the city council-approved proposal, they asked the House of Representatives, through Rep. Roque R. Ablan Jr. (1st district, Ilocos Norte) for the passage of a measure declaring February 10 as a special non-working holiday for Laoag. Fariñas added that aside from the council resolution, he has also personally written the congressman on the matter as he explained that the permanent declaration of February 10 as a holiday in Laoag can only come from a Republic Act from Congress. Meanwhile, Fariñas announced that Ilocos Norte Governor Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has approved the use of the Provincial Capitol outdoor stage for fiesta celebrations. The governor has also okayed the use of the Ilocos Norte Centennial Arena, which would be used for the beauty pageants. Fariñas, for his part, has also approved the participation of the different tricycle associations in the city for the fiesta celebration, declaring February 7 as “Tricycle Day.” Dominic B. dela Cruz
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